
Glass V^(otr.' 
Book 




"''^^'^Bn>sfcr ,h^ -Life a^^ '"' 



©ZW L.U. §. ^'^h'^1. 



HE APFEA?.}-.!' A?-;^;k ;h.-. w/v.^ 



AS A MAN, THE NOBLEST AND PUREST OF HIS TIMES. 

AS A SOLDIER, THE IDOL OF MILLIONS OF PEOPLE. 

AS A CITIZEN. THE GRANDEST OF THE NAnON, 



THE MOST COMPLETE AND AUTHENTIC HISTORY 

OF THE 

LIFE A.XD PUBLIC SERVICES 




U. S. GRANT, 



"THE NAPOLEON OF AMERICA.' 

C0>:T^1NG a FLXL account of his early life; HIS RECORD AS A gTODHn' 

AT IBE WEST POINT MILITARY ACADE^H' ; HIS GALLANTRY IN THE MeSc^ 

war; HIS HONORABLE CAREER AS A BUSINESS .AL^N IV ST LOVK 4XD 

galena: his eminent SERVICES TO HIS COUNTRY IN OTR GRE.1T 

CIVIL WAR ; HIS ELECTION TO THE PRESIDENCY : HLS \BLE AND 

PATRIOTIC ADMINISTP^mON: HIS TOUR AROUND THE 

WORLD, WITH AN ACCOUNT OF THE GREAT HONORS 

SHOWN HBI BY THE EMPERORS, KINGS AND 

RULERS OF AIX NATir»N.S ; m.s HEROISM IN 

SL-FFERING, and PATHETIC DEATH. 

BY 

COLONEL HERMAN' DIECK, 

THE WELL-KNOWN AUTHOR. 



TBT. RECORD OF AS HONORABLE AND BRILLLA^NT CAREER : A .STRIKING ILLUS- 
IRATION of the TRIUMPH OF GENIUS UNDER FREE LNSTCTLTIONS. 



J^^MKbU witk Dearly 2C9 fm lilastraticns of Scries ia the life of the Greai M£ar, 



PUBLISHED BY THE 

HERO PUBLISHING COMPANY, 

909 ARCH ST., PHILADELPHIA. PA. 

B. F. JONES & CO.. I M. S. BARNETT & CO.. 

Laxkside Buildihg, Chicago, III. j 420 Mawcet Str^t, St. LcxB, Ma 



.DS5 



;3;t»aS'- 



c; F-i^.-U^^^^y 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1885, by 

WM. R. VANSANT, 

In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C. 





FROM AP.ECENT PHOTOGRAPH, 




'^^^S»r^ 



:--«r- r■^■* >T^'T" 



4 



INTRODUCTION. 



This account of the early life of General Grant is at 
once full and accurate, for it was obtained from original 
and authentic sources. The history of his military career 
is written with that skill and power which, long since, 
secured for our author the foremost position among 
American historical writers. The battles in which Gen- 
eral Grant was engaged, from that of Belmont to the 
final surrender of General Lee's army, are described in 
detail, and with that graphic power which presents the 
different scenes with all the brilliancy, vividness and dis- 
tinctness of a painting, and with the life-like accuracy of 
a photograph. His two administrations as President are 
described with a master's pen, and his travels round the 
world, with the receptions and honors conferred on him, 
exceeding in number and brilliancy those shown to any 
royal potentate, are set forth with the vivid powers of 
description for which the author is so distinguished. The 
trials of his private life, his sickness, wonderful patience 
in suffering, and his universally lamented death are all 
depicted with unrivalled pathos and power. 

It is the pride and boast of America that this is a 
country of self-made men. However humble may be 
the position of a man, it is within his power, in this land 
of equality and free institutions, to attain the highest 
honors within the gift of his fellows-citizens. Our history 
is full of the names of men who, without friends or fortune 
to aid them, have risen by the force of their own abilities 

7 



8 LIFE OF GENERAL GRANT. 

to the proudest position in the Republic. Washington, 
Jefferson, Lincoln, Garfield, and their glorious compeers, 
were all self-made men, and carved out their great suc- 
cesses by their own unaided efforts. Their examples 
shine out brightly to encourage and cheer others who 
are struggling onward in the road by which they climbed 
to greatness. 

No career in all our history furnishes a more brilliant 
example of this than that of General Ulysses S. Grant. 
Starting as a poor boy, he raised himself to the highest 
pinnacle of fame. It is but natural that his countrymen 
should desire to know the means by which this great 
success was accomplished. To meet this demand the 
author has prepared this volume, which relates in the 
most fascinating manner the Hfe of this truly great man. 
The work is more interesting than a novel, for it is true. 
It is the story of unconquerable determination and sub- 
lime self-reliance, of lofty purpose and inflexible resolve, 
of incorruptible integrity and moral courage of the highest 
type, of noble effort and magnificent achievement, of a 
prolonged and determined struggle, crowned by the 
most brilliant triumphs. 

No more truly did the great Napoleon rise from 
obscurity to the pinnacle of fame by herculean energy 
and an indomitable will that carried him over the snow- 
capped mountains in the piercing cold of mid-winter, 
than did General Grant, by the same innate, progressive 
energy, rise from obscurity to the highest position attain- 
able in this the foremost nation of the world. His life, 
while wrapped in romance like a cloak, had its shadows, its 
sacrifices and its magnificent successes. It is an inspir- 
in!^^ captivating and thrilling story, and points such a 
moral as only great deeds can. The young men of the 
nation should read it, for it may be to them a source of 



INTRODUCTION. 9 

inspiration. Old men should read it, for it will recall to 
them holy memories of the deeds of the great men of our 
past history. 

This book differs essentially from the many so-called 
Lives of Grant now being pubHshed, and should not be 
classed with them. While recording his, illustrious 
achievements in the field and his career as President of 
the United States, it is yet personal, rather than political, 
and free from partisan coloring, depicting not only the 
exploits of Grant the soldier, but the entire life of Grant 
the man, his daily habits and conversation, his thoughts 
and his motives, as evinced by his acts and words, under 
all the circumstances of his eventful life. 

His record is clearly presented, that all men may see 
his life has been free from stain, his services honorable 
and distinguished, and that his claims to the love and 
confidence of the American people rest upon a solid 
foundation of genuine merit and faithful service honor- 
ably performed. No soldier, since Napoleon I., has 
accomplished such great results. It is generally ad- 
mitted that the victories of General Grant saved the 
Union, and it is not, therefore, surprising that all the 
world should have done homage to the greatest military 
genius of the century. 

THE WORK SHOWS 

How a poor boy secured a good education and fitted 
himself for the struggle he meant to make in after-life. 

How, when the call of his country summoned him to 
arms, he became a great soldier; how he turned the 
tide of defeat, and began the series of Union victories 
that cheered the hearts of his countrymen and caused 
our brave soldiers to take fresh courage and resolve 
to conquer or die. 



10 LIFE OF GENERAL GRANT. 

How he won a great and glorious name as a gen- 
eral in the service of his country ; how he mounted 
from rank to rank until he finally attained the prolid 
position of Commander-in-Chief of the National Armies. 

How he led our brave soldiers to victory on many 
hard-fought fields, and finally suppressed the Rebellion. 

How, without solicitation, or any effort on his part, he 
was nominated for the Presidency of the United States, 
and triumphandy elected. 

How he was inaugurated President amidst the rejoic- 
ings of the people, and with the most imposing cere- 
monies ever witnessed in the Capitol of the nation. 

How by his able and patriotic administration of the 
national orovernment he won the confidence and affection 
of the whole people. 

How a noble and well-spent life has brought honor 
and fame to a true and earnest man, thus holding out 
one of the most glorious examples ever offered to the 
young men of our country. 

The splendor of General Grant's reception in the 
many countries through which he traveled in his re- 
markable journey around the world was owing to his 
great fame as a soldier. Wherever he went he was re- 
ceived by people and sovereigns with royal honors, and 
was in all respects the most honored traveler that 
ever accomplished the journey around the world. 
The distinguished American ex-President, though 
traveling as a private citizen of the United States, 
made the most remarkable journey in history, 
seeing more, and being more honored and admitted 
to closer confidence by Emperors, Kings and 
Rulers, than any other person who has undertaken to 
seek instruction and recreation by extensive travels 
through foreign lands. The whole journey was like a 



INTRODUCTION. \l 

romance, and the countries through which General Grant 
traveled exerted themselves to show him all they have 
wordi seeing. Who of crowned monarchs could have 
made the circuit of civilizadon with so many disdnguished 
marks of honor? Who of contemporary military men 
would have excited so much interest in all quarters of 
the globe ? 

The work not only relates the travels and experiences 
of General Grant, but it is full of carefully prepared de- 
scripdons of the famous cides and sights of Europe, Asia 
and Africa, and abounds in informadon respecdng the 
people, manners and customs of the old world. It is, 
therefore, a work of great value, giving as it does a life- 
like picture of the places and people visited by the great 
commander in the course of his travels. 

The author's indmate knowledge of the man whose 
life he relates has rendered him peculiarly suited to the 
task he has undertaken. He has embraced every means 
of thoroughly acquaindng himself with his subject, and 
it is confidendy asserted that he has produced a work 
that will win 'ts way into every household. 



LAST HOURS OF GENERAL GRANT. 



BY HIS PASTOR, 

REV. J. P. NEWMAN, D.D. 



In writing of the last hours and religious faith of General 
Grant, Rev. Dr. Newman said : 

" I arrived at Mt. McGregor Tuesday afternoon, at 6 P. M. 

*• While with the family at dinner, in the hotel, General Grant 
was removed from his sick room, wherein he had spent so many 
weary and suffering days and nights, into the drawing-room, which 
afforded purer air and more agreeable surroundings. 

The change was necessary, both as a diversion to the illustrious 
sufferer and for the convenience of his faithful attendants. From 
seven till nine he sank rapidly, without any apparent signs of re- 
covery, but retained his consciousness and the clearness of his 
intellect. He was surrounded with his family and physicians, and, 
at Mrs. Grant's request, we all bowed around the General's chair, 
and offered our supplications for strength and comfort in that 
supreme moment. 

" The General indicated his appreciation of the sacredness of the 
ceremonies by clasping his hands as in reverential prayer. All 
were deeply moved, as all feared the end had come. But, to 
the surprise and delight of the physicians and the family, the 
General greatly revived by nine o'clock, and indicated his wish to 
write. As quickly as possible, in response to the wish, an elegant 
writing board, often used by the departed, was placed upon the 
arms of his chair. A solitary wax taper burned before him. He 
adjusted his glasses; and then, with a trembling hand, wrote with 
his pencil on the tablet before him. His face wore an expression of 
anguish, and his thin lips seemed to pronounce the words he 
wished to write. He hesitated for a moment ; but he gathered up 



14 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

his soul in strength for the supreme effort. Having written down 
half the page, he traced each line with his pencil to see that each 
line expressed his thought, and then crossed the fs and punctuated 
the sentences. But he had not written all that he desired. Again 
he called upon himself for additional strength, and finished the 
communication. It was addressed to his noble son, the Colonel, 
and contained the wish that, wherever the General might be buried, 
Mrs. Grant should have a resting place by his side in death. 

" The writing-desk was removed ; but, in a few moments he 
recalled it, and he wrote a short communication to his son, giving 
some important direction, when the Colonel replied : ' Father, I 
have attended to that." Again the desk was removed, and again 
he called for it. The family sought to persuade him not to make 
another effort, but he was still General, and his wishes were 
granted, and he wrote another family message. 

"The members of the household retired to the verandah. The 
lights were turned down and all prayed that the Lord would give 
his beloved sleep. But at 1 1 o'clock, he sent word to us v/ho were 
sitting on the porch : ' There is no earthly reason why you should 
sit up. Go and take your rest.' This was uttered in a husky 
whisper. 

"All withdrew, but no one could sleep. The weary hours wore 
on. Wednesday came, with its fitful transitions. The illustrious 
sufferer was conscious and calm. As we sat around him, watching 
each respiration, he suddenly opened his eyes, and whispered : * I 
hope no one will feel distressed on my account' And thus he 
sought to direct attention away from himself in his solicitude for the 
comfort of those he loved. This was the grandeur of his soul. To 
save others was the mission of his life ; and this ruling passion was 
strong in death. 

"The day had passed, the family had gone to dinner, except the 
oldest son, who, noticing his father's restlessness in the chair, sug- 
gested that he might find more comfort lying upon the bed. It was 
evidently agreeable, and, forgetting his feebleness, true to his char- 
acter, he made the effort to rise. His attendants gently lifted him 
and placed him on the couch from which he was never to rise. He 
had not then reclined for more than eight months. He was in no 
danger now of strangulation from the accumulation of mucus, and 



LAST HOURS OF GENERAL GRANT. 1 5 

he quietly rested ; but within an hour thereafter the end seemed 
imminent. 

"Again we gathered around the husband, father, and friend 
and, at Mrs. Grant's request, all bowed in prayer while I committed 
his departing soul to the sheltering-arms of that Divine Redeemer 
in whom he trusted with a simple and beautiful faith. 

'* Again death relaxed his grasp. The feet were cold, and also 
the hands, but the brow was warm and it was evident that the brain 
would be the last of him to die. 

" Still conscious, his intellect was unclouded. Mrs. Grant pressed 
his cold hand and said, ' Darling, do you know me?' and he opened 
his eyes and gave her the look of love. The respirations grew 
shorter, now forty-four. Within an hour thereafter fifty, then, as 
the nigh twore on, they increased to sixty-five. The pulse was too 
rapid to be counted. The mucus gathered in the throat, and there 
was neither ability to eject it or swallow it, and the respirations 
caused the death rattle, which was more distressing to those in at- 
tendance than to the sufferer. 

" His lips were constantly moistened with ice water, now by the 
wife, now by the daughter, or by the faithful nurse. None of the 
household slept. All were keeping holy vigils : for all felt sure 
that as the light of another morning came would also come upon 
his spirit the light of the morning of his immortality. 

"About four o'clock in the morning he opened his eyes in re- 
sponse to my question, ' General, do you know me? ' and, an hour 
before he expired, again he opened his eyes in response to a similar 
question by his precious daughter Nellie. This was his last look of 
earthly recognition. 

" At 8 o'clock on Thursday morning of July 23d, all were sum- 
moned for the final meeting. Death had conquered the noble brow, 
and the expressive features were calm. The breath grew shorter, 
and at 8.08 the dying hero opened his eyes upon the sorrowing 
group around him ; and then, with a gentle breath, he took his 
flight from the scenes of earth and time. 

" It was his last earthly look on those he loved, and with that 
farewell vision he ascended to his reward. All were deeply moved, 
yet all controlled their profound emotions. The beloved wife 
kissed the calm brow, and then I led hpr to the sofa, whispering a 



1 6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

word of hope and comfort, where she soon regained her accustomed 
composure. 

" The great warrior and statesman, patriot, and friend, died as the 
Christian dieth. He had said to me, * I believe in the Holy Scrip- 
tures, and whoever follows them, will be benefited thereby.' His 
faith in immortality was without a doubt, and he wrote on a tablet: 
* I pray that the prayers of the people, offered in my behalf, may 
be so far answered that we may all meet in a better world.' And 
when I suggested, in the month of April, that he might be restored, 
and accomplish much for his countrymen by his religious example, 
his response was, If I am spared, I shall throw all my influence in 
that direction. 



i 



TSIIEI 



LIFE AND PUBLIC SERVICES 

OF 

General Ulysses S. Grant. 

THE NAPOLEON OF AMERICA. 



CHAPTER I. 

ANCESTRY. 

The Ancestors of Ulysses S. Grant — Matthew Grant emigrates from Devon, England—. 
Samuel Grant — Samuel Grant 2d — Noah Grant — Noah Grant 2d — Noah Grant 3d — • 
Jesse R. Grant — Ulysses S. Grant — Boyhood of Ulysses — His admiration for George 
Washington — A leader among his companions — An excellent rider and industrious 
boy — Nominated for a cadetship — Changing his name. 

The biography of the great hero who saved our glori- 
ous Union will always be read with the deepest int'erest 
by his countrymen. No military man of modern times 
has accomplished so much as the subject of this narrative. 
From his boyhood his deeds and not his words have 
always spoken for him. Whenever he deemed it advisa- 
ble to make any Important military movement, he would 
consult his generals, and if he thought their plans good he 
would adopt them, and If successful give them the credit. 
If he failed he would take the blame upon himself. He 
never pushed himself Into notoriety, and yet no man on 
this continent ever enjoyed more celebrity. 

The name of Ulysses S. Grant will be remembered with 
veneration and grautude as long as the United States of 
America exist. Among the great generals of their times, 
he will always be spoken of as one of the foremost. His 
countrymen proved to him their gratitude by raising him to 

* (17) 



1 8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

the highest military position obtainable, that of General of 
the United States Army, then by twice electing him Presi- 
dent of the United States by overwhelming majorities, and 
finally, by reinstating him to the office as full General and 
putting him on the retired list. The latter act of Congress 
was passed on the 4th day of March, 1885, the signing of 
which was the last official act of the then outgoing Presi- 
dent, Chester A. Arthur. 

During the latter part of the summer of 1630, or 
early in the fall, no less than seventeen vessels arrived 
in New England, bringing families, their cattle, house- 
hold goods, and other worldly possessions. The '' Mary 
and John," a ship of 400 tons, which sailed from Ply- 
mouth, England, on the 20th of March, brought 140 emi- 
grants from "the West-country," Dorsetshire, Devon 
and Somerset, among them Matthew Grant and Priscilla, 
his wife, the earliest known ancestors of General Grant. 
They were both twenty-nine years of age, and brought with 
them an infant daughter. The ship landed at Nantasket, 
about nine miles from the city of Boston. The Nantasket 
settlers hospitably received the newxomers until they could 
larid at Boston. 

Captain Squib, master of the " Mary and John," though 
a good sailor, was not willing to venture his ship Into the 
intricacies of a harbor of which he knew nothing. But he 
had agreed to take his immigrants to Boston ; and the colo- 
nial authorities held a prejudice, not yet altogether extinct 
in New England, in favor of having agreements lived up 
to. So Captain Squib's passengers brought suit against 
him, and recovered damages, for not being landed at their 
destined port. 

Some days elapsed after the immigrants reached Nan- 
tasket before Governor Winthrop arrived at Salem, then 
boasting but ten buildings, where he found a frame house 
aw^aiting him. In those days milk sold for one penny a 
quart; and colonists w^rote home glowing descriptions of 
the beauty and fertility of New England. 

The " West-country people " settled a few miles from 
Boston, at Matapan. This Indian appellation they changed 



ANCESTRY. 1 9 

to Dorchester, In memory of the county town of their own 
EngHsh Dorsetshire, which, Hke most British names ending 
in "Chester" {casti^a, camp), is the site of an old Roman 
encampment. So the memory of Imperial Caesar, dead and 
turned to clay, invaded the domain of the Sachem of " Mos- 
chuset," and changed its nomenclature. 

Dorchester is now a pleasant Boston suburb of half a 
dozen villages and hundreds of generous residences with 
exquisite grounds. As Emerson says of England, it is fin- 
ished with the pencil instead of the plow. One house is 
still standing which was built in 1633, and at the "raising" 
of which, perhaps, Matthew Grant assisted. 

In his day, Dorchester Plantation was a rude settlement 
of a few log-cabins, straggling over most of the territory 
now embraced in Milton, Canton, Stoughton, Sharon, and 
South Boston. The salt marshes afforded excellent sub- 
sistence for the famishing catde of the immigrants, but they 
themselves suffered for want of food. Their first meal was 
of fish without any bread, and for months they endured 
many hardships. Says Roger Clap : " The place was a wil- 
derness. Fish was a good help to me and to others. 
Bread was so scarce that I thought the- very crusts from 
my father's table would have been sweet ; and when I 
could have meal and salt and water boiled together, I 
asked, ' Who would ask for better ? ' " 

Among the settlers of Dorchester were several elderly 
gentlemen of good estate in England, three men of military 
experience, and two stockholders of the London Company 
which held the Massachusetts Bay Charter. The charter 
had been drafted for a trading company rather than for a 
government, so the control of the settlement vested only in 
the stockholders. But the Puritans would not permit Dor- 
chester to be governed by two men, and the Court of Mas- 
sachusetts Bay bestowed freemanship upon twenty-four 
colonists within a month after the arrival of the " Mary and 
John." Freemanship was an important endowment, secur- 
ing to its recipients large tracts of land and making them 
members of the General Court. This unique tribunal was 
a sort of colonial town meeting for local government, as 



20 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

the representative system was not yet In vogue and the col- 
ony was almost a pure democracy. The principal qualifi- 
cation for freemanship seems to have been piety, or at least 
church membership ; and Matthew Grant received it, with 
many others, after he had lived in America for one year. 

When Matthew had been four years in America, Pris- 
cilla, his wife, died, and left four children, the youngest an 
infant. The next year, 1635, nearly half of the first Dor- 
chester setders went to establish new homes in the wilder- 
ness of the Connecdcut Valley, far beyond the confines of 
civlllzadon. Early historians give as reasons for this 
second migradon a "hankering after new lands," which 
were ferdle and grassy, while those of Dorchester were 
rocky and heavily wooded ; better opportunities for trading 
in furs with the Indians ; and fears lest Connecticut should 
fall into the hands of the Dutch, who were attempdng to 
settle it. 

Matthew Grant — now resdess and lonely — went with the 
rest. Reaching the present site of Windsor, half-way be- 
tween Springfield and Hartford, and already setded by an 
offshoot from the Plymouth Colony, they were entertained 
by the pioneers, and, after examining the country, deter- 
mined to stay. The setders from Plymouth resented this 
as ungenerous ; but the Dorchester people persisted, and 
even drove away another party of twenty from Massa- 
chusetts Bay, likewise desirous of remaining. 

Matthew Grant and his companions spent the summer in 
felling trees and building log-houses. Their families re- 
mained behind in Dorchester, and in October several of 
the men went back for them. Sending their household 
goods by ship arcund through Long Island Sound, to come 
up the Connecticut, diey started on their return to Windsor, 
by land, the babies and invalids on horseback, and men 
and women walking, and driving their catde through the 
Avilderness. 

Winter set in early. By the middle of November the 
river was fast frozen, and the snow deep. The overland 
emigrants suffered much, and were obliged to leave their 
cattle in the woods, where many died, while the rest lived 



ANCESTRY. 2 1 

on acorns until spring. Reaching the Windsor settlement 
the travellers were appalled to learn that the ship, with 
their provisions, was imprisoned in the river below. Several 
of the party went back to Massachusetts Bay in despair, 
while those who remained subsisted chiefly on nuts and 
acorns. At length a party of seventy — men, women and 
children — started for the ship, which had frozen in twenty 
miles above the river's mouth, that they might live on her 
supplies. But before they reached her she was released 
by the spring thaw ; so they returned to their setdement, 
which at first they called New Dorchester, but finally 
changed it to Windsor. 

They carried their lives in their hands. Like all fronder- 
men they were reckless of their own safety, but prudent 
for their wives and children. As soon as their families 
arrived they built a palisade, a quadrangle three-quarters 
of a mile long, to protect them against Indians. Those who 
had houses or lots outside left them and moved in. Mat- 
thew Grant had cleared six acres, but abandoned it all ex- 
cept the litde piece on which his log-dwelling stood, within 
the palisade, and next to the old Windsor town-house. For 
ninety years the colonists suffered constandy from Indians. 
At home, in the field, in the meeting-house, nowhere were 
they secure. 

Matthew Grant filled quite a large place in the set- 
tlement. He was elected one of two surveyors, to overlook 
the construction and preservation of highways, and con- 
tinued in that office for the greater part of his life. The 
roads and farm boundaries were very crooked and Involved, 
and real estate plentiful and cheap. After working hard all 
day at surveying, Matthew used to say, '4 would not 
accept all the land I have bounded to-day as pay for my 
day's work." 

He served as town clerk for many years. His auto- 
graph constandy appears on the Windsor records, to au- 
thenticate public documents. In 1637 the driven-out 
Massachusetts people sold their tract to this colony. Ap- 
pended to the deed Is a long note describing the land, and 
signed ''Matthew Grant, Recorder." He seems to have 



2 2 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

taken a just pride in his own integrity. In a land suit, in 
1675, in a deposition still preserved in the State archives at 
Hartford, he testified in somewhat nebulous rhetoric : 

"If any question my uprightness and legal acting about 
our town affairs, that I have been employed in a measure of 
land and e^ttino- out of lots of men which has been done 
by me from our first beginning here come next September 
is forty yere. I never got out any land to any man until I 
knew he had a grant to it from the townsmen, and town's 
approbation, or to recording after the book was turned. I am 
chose near twenty-three years since. I can say with a cleare 
conscience I have been careful to do nothing upon one 
man's desire." 

A division arose in the church about the old minister, 
Wareham, who had come with the colonists from Dor- 
chester, and, in his old age, was thought a little rigid and 
narrow even for those days. So a party of townspeople 
established a parish under a younger and more liberal 
divine named Woodbridge. They desired to have this 
entered upon the town records ; but Matthew Grant, 
apparently alarmed at the degeneracy and growing impiety 
of the times, refused to write it. The new church people, 
however, seemed to have demanded the book to enter the 
fact themselves. At all events, the record stands in a strange 
handwriting, with a note appended in Matthew's well- 
known chirography explaining the affair, and indirectly 
protesting against it. The Windsor records, in the library 
of the Connecticut Historical Society, show that he was 
clerk of the church until his death. 

Among the passengers by the " Mary and John " was Wil- 
liam Rockwell, an elderly man of good estate, who brought 
Susannah, liis wife, and eight children. He also came to 
Windsor, where he was first deacon of the church. In 1640 
he died. Five years later, and ten years after the loss of 
his first wife, Matthew Grant was married to Susannah 
Rockwell. He was forty-four years old, and she forty-three, 
and they began housekeeping with the fair start of twelve 
children. They lived together twenty-one years. She died 
November 14th, 1666, and he December i6th, T68i,atthe 



ANCESTRY. 23 

age of eighty, outliving her fifteen years, and spending the 
close of his life with his youngest son, John. 

Samuel, Matthew's second son, was born In Dorchester, 
November 12th, 1631. When four years old he removed 
with his father to Windsor, where he lived and died. He 
left eight children, all bearing Biblical names. 

Samuel (second), first child of the above, was born in 
Windsor, April 20th, 1659. On coming to manhood he 
moved to East Windsor, just across the river. There he 
lived and died, leaving nine children, of whom seven bore 
Biblical names. 

Noah, first child of the above by a second marriage, was 
born in Windsor, December i6th, 1692. During his lifetime 
the portion of Windsor In which he resided was set off to 
Tolland. From his wife's family descended Samuel Hunt- 
ington, one of the first Supreme Judges and afterwards 
Governor of Ohio. 

Noah (second), eldest child of the above, was born in 
Tolland, July 12th, 1718. He married Susannah Delano, of 
the family from which Columbus Delano, late a Repre- 
sentadve In Congress from Ohio, is descended. About 1 750 
Noah moved to the adjoining town of Coventry. Soon 
after began the final struggle between the French and 
English for supremacy on the American Condnent, in which 
he and his brother Solomon both served. 

Before entering the service, Solomon Grant, who was a 
bachelor, thirty years old, made his will, giving his real 
estate to Noah, or. In the event of Noah's death, to his 
eldest son, and so on In entail forever. 

^ The inventory accompanying gave the property as about 
nine hundred pounds sterling. The brothers were both 
killed in an engagement near Oswego, New York, Septem- 
ber 20th, 1756. 

Noah and his brother were In different companies, Noah 
a captain, and Solomon a lieutenant. The original muster- 
roll of Noah's company is suU preserved in his own hand- 
writing, headed by his own name as captain, and dated 
March 26th, 1755. 

Noah (third), son of the above, was born in Coventry, 



24 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Connecticut, on the 23d of June, 1748. The subsequent 
change in our calendar from Old Style to New brought 
his birthday on the 4th of July, to the keen satisfaction 
of Noah, who had inherited the patriotic and military 
tastes of his father. After marrying Anna Buell, of the 
family from which sprang General Don Carlos Buell, 
Noah went into the army at the first drum-beat of the con- 
flict for Independence. He was a lieutenant of militia at 
the battle of Lexington, and served through the entire 
Revolutionary War, coming out with the rank of captain. 

When he returned from the war, the Connecticut Valley, 
which, a hundred and fifty years earlier, his ancestor Mat- 
thew had found a howling v/ilderness, was dotted with 
towns, villages and farms, and filled with an industrious, 
thrifty people. 

Noah Grant returned to a desolate home. His wife had 
died, leaving him two sons, Solomon and Peter. Under 
this affliction, aggravated by the restlessness which army 
life leaves, in 1790 he succumbed to the prevailing emigra- 
tion fever, and removed to Westmoreland county, Pennsyl- 
vania, settlinor near Greensburo-, on the Mononcrahela river. 

The people of Westmoreland lived largely upon venison 
and potatoes, though catde were plentiful, and the new 
land produced corn abundantly. They shipped cider and 
beer down the river to Ohio and Kentucky, and made 
enormous quantities of whiskey, supplying much of the 
South and West. They raised flax from which the women 
wove clothing for their entire families. Iron mines in the 
vicinity of Pittsburgh were already attracting attention; 
glass and iron manufactories were springing up, and some 
oil wells had been discovered. They were not deemed 
valuable, however, but simply regarded as curiosities. The 
woods still abounded in whip-poor-wills, owls, bears and 
panthers, and often in hostile Indians. There was no 
money in the region, and its entire business was conducted 
throu^ih barter. 

Such was the country and society in which Noah Grant 
settled. On the 4th of March, 1792, he married a widow 
named Rachael Kelly, by whom he had seven children. 




HOUSE 



W1II.RE GRANT WAS MARRILD AN 



D n SlDl N^- VVHI N TIMLS WFRC HARD, 



ANCESTRY. 25 

Jesse Root Grant, fourth child of the above, was born 
January 23d, 1794. He was named for Jesse Root, many 
years Chief-Justice of the Supreme Court of Connecticut. 

Noah Grant, still restless, lived only nine years in Penn- 
sylvania. In April, i 799, again he folded his tent like the 
Arab, and as silently stole away — into a new wilderness. 
Wagons were then litde used ; the river, alive with travel 
and commerce, was the great thoroughfare. At high water 
crafts went from Pittsburgh to the present site of Cairo, 
at the mouth of the Ohio, in twenty days, but in summer 
the voyage sometimes consumed ten weeks. 

The river vessels floated with the current, were fiat-bot- 
tomed, and of two classes: trading boats, bound for Ken- 
tucky and New Orleans, and loaded with whiskey, flour, 
apples, cider, apple-brandy, earthenware, iron, and glass ; 
and family boats, of emigrants, carrying farming utensils, 
household goods, cattle, horses, men, women, and children. 

In a boat of the latter class Noah Grant and his wife 
embarked with their five young children, a horse, two cows, 
cooking utensils, and all the rest of their worldly goods. 
Their craft was snug, and a part of it was roofed. Bidding 
adieu to their old home, they floated down the Mononga- 
hela and then down the Ohio, whose banks were already 
dotted by a few farms. 

Forty-five miles below Pittsburgh and two below the 
Pennsylvania line, they landed at the litde setdement of 
Fawcettstown, now Liverpool, Columbiana county, Ohio. 
Noah Grant found it composed only of half a dozen log- 
cabins in the deep forest. 

Noah Grant raised his cabin on the bank of the Ohio. 
Just after his arrival, an Indian called White Eyes was 
shot by a settler's son, in a personal altercation. This 
caused a few skirmishes, until the citizens united and 
cleared the entire region of red men. 

December following, Washington died. One day Jesse, 
five years old, observed his mother weeping, and asked: 

"What is the matter?" 

" George Washington is dead," she replied, through her 
sobs. 



26 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

The lad, upon whom a knowledge of the father of his 
country had never yet dawned, promptly inquired: 

" Was he any relation of yours ? " 

Noah Grant had only established himself temporarily. 
The Western Reserve was not yet surveyed or open to 
setdement; but he looked upon it with longing eyes, for it 
was an admirable body of land. Its three millions of acres 
embraced the present site of Cleveland, and the eight 
northeastern counties of Ohio. It was known as New 
Connecticut, for it belonged to the Nutmeg State. In 1800, 
however, she sold it to the General Government, and from 
the proceeds obtained her magnificent school fund. But 
she retained one county for the benefit of her own citizens, 
who had suff^.red from the burning of buildings by the 
British during the Revolution, and these tracts were long 
known as the " Connecticut Fire Lands." 

The whole region was settled chiefly from New England, 
and to this day, in pronunciations, in idioms, in social habits, 
and in political faith. It is like a portion of Massachusetts 
transplanted bodily to the West. 

When Jesse was ten years old the Reserve was thrown 
open, and his father established his new home upon it, in 
Portage county, forty miles from the old home, and near 
the present town of Deerfield. 

The next year Noah's wife died. It was a sore loss, for 
she was the chief dependence of the famih'. Noah Grant 
was well educated, clear-headed, a brilliant talker, and a 
vivid describer of battles. But he was never a provident 
man. On coming to his majority he inherited a life-interest 
In the Coventry property left by his uncle Solomon. But, 
litde by litde, he parted with it all before he was thirty 
years old. And in seven years of military life, a common 
misfortune befell liim — he lost something of his self-control, 
and acquired the fondness for stimulants often born of army 
excitements. So, since the close ot the war, his family had 
been poor, and now, the death of his wife broke It up. The 
younger children were adopted by neighbors, and Susan 
and Jesse, the two eldest, had to face life and provide for 
themselves. 



ANCESTRY. 2*J 

After Jesse's mother died, he worked at several places, 
earning plain food and scanty clothing; but in November, 
1808, the lad, now fourteen years old, went twenty-five miles 
from Deerfield, to Youngstown, Trumbull count\\ to live 
with Judge George Tod of the State Supreme Court. Here 
Jesse found a home. He was sent to school three months 
of the first, and three months of the second year, but that 
was the whole of his school educadon. In arithmetic he 
arrived at a dim percepdon of the single rule of three. 
Later in lite he devoted himself to text-books, until suf- 
ficiendy accomplished for the transaction of ordinary busi- 
ness, and even studied grammar after he was a married 
man. He even composed verses. One specimen of his 
poetry is preserved. It explains itself and reads as fol- 
iow^s : 

In eighteen hundred and forty-one 
Our p;irtnershi|) was tirst begun — 
We two then became as one, 

To deal in leather. 
Some little business we have done 

While together. 

A dozen years we've toiled together 
In making and in vending leather 
Suited to every stage of weatlier, 

E'er dry or rain. 
The time has come for us to sever, 

And we are twain. 

E. A. Collins is still on hand, 
And occupies the former stand, 
Where he has always held command, 

To buy and sell. 
As matters now are being planned, 

May he do well. 

J. R. Grant, the old off-wheel, 
As quick and firm as smitten steel. 
Does yet a strong desire feel 

To do some more. 
Then expect within the field 

A brand new store. 

Our hearty thanks we humbly send 
To every customer and friend 
Who has stood by us to the end 

With free good-will ; 
And say in future we intend 

To serve you still. 



28 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

There's one thing more we have to say; 
To those who owe us, we want our pay ; 
Then send it on without delay — 

The full amount, 
For still we have some debts to pay 

On firm account. 

The orphan lad was happy at his new home. Among 
his playmates was David Tod, who lived to be Governor 
of Ohio, while Jesse's son was leading great armies to 
victory. 

Mush and milk was the boys' luxury. Every night they 
were sent to eat it for supper before the roaring log-fire 
of the great kitchen. On the first evening the spoons and 
bowls excited Jesse's wonder. He thought them a miracle 
of elegance. 

At sixteen, Jesse left Judge Tod's, and returned to Deer- 
field, where he spent two years in learning the tanning 
business. But the yard was only large enough to employ 
one man ; so, at eighteen, he was apprenticed to his half- 
brother in Maysville, Kentucky. There he remained till 
he had become a first-class tanner. This was during the 
war of 1812. 

In 181 5, peace being declared, Jesse, now twenty-one, 
returned to Deerfield, took the litde tan-yard and went into 
business for himself. He began without capital, but being 
industrious and frugal, steadily accumulated property. This 
year he made his first trip to Cincinnati, a settlement of 
six thousand people. 

At the end of two years the young tanner removed fif- 
teen miles to Ravenna. In two years more he was the 
owner of fifteen hundred dollars, chiefly invested in his tan- 
yard and leather, w^hich made him the richest citizen of the 
little town. 

On the morning of his twenty-fifth birthday, Jesse awoke 
and said to a fellow-workman who slept with him : 

" I always promised myself a wife at twenty-five, if I 
should have the means to support her. Now I have the 
property, but I don't know where to look. However, 
before going to bed I will make a start in some direction 
toward t^ettinir married." 



ANCESTRY. 29 

So the tall young man donned his Sunday suit, put 
thino-s to rights in the tan-yard, and then walked thought- 
fully about the little tavern where he boarded. Tanning 
and Sunday clothing do not assimilate; and the landlady's 
curiosity was excited by his unusual garb. She asked: 

"What are you thinking about so seriously?" 

"About looking for a wife." 

" Where are you going to look ? " 

"Well, I don't know — somewhere, where there are girls." 

Jesse remembered one Clara Hall, whom he had never 
seen but once, and that fifteen months before. After din- 
ner, he went to call on her. She received him cordially, 
and, true to her sex, proved an enthusiastic match-maker. 
He had given her no hint of his purpose, but the feminine 
instinct was stroncr within her. W^hen he asked who lived 
in a neighboring house, she replied: 

" My uncle Timoth}^ and he has a daughter who will 
make you a capital wife. Now I am going to send for her 
to come over to tea, and you must go home with her." 

This was a diversion. Clara, not her cousin, had been 
in Jesse's mind. But the cousin, Prudence by name, came 
duly, and he not only took her home, as he was bid, but on 
the way agreed upon a correspondence with her. After 
keeping this up for a few months, the young couple re- 
solved to face the perils of matrimony, and agreed that the 
knot should be tied immediately "after court." The 
Supreme Court sat in Deerfield every October, and the 
session brought much business to the town. 

But the course of this true love did not run smooth. In 
August Jesse was attacked by the fever and ague. 

In January, 1820, so far recovered that he could travel 
eight or ten miles a day, he spent a few weeks with rela- 
tives in Maysville. There his father had died a few months 
before. After losing his wife, Noah resided near his old 
Ohio home until 181 1, supporting himself and aiding his 
younger children by shoemaking. Then he removed to 
Maysville, and spent the rest of his life with his youngest 
son, who was a prominent and successful business man. 

Jesse's sickness lasted over a year. When he had so 



30 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

far recovered as to go to work again, he settled In Cler- 
mont county, on the north bank of the Ohio river, twenty- 
five miles above Cincinnati. The little village, of fifteen 
or twenty families, was called Point Pleasant. A citizen 
had offered to furnish the money for setting up the tanning 
business, if Jesse would teach its art and mystery to his 
son. 

In Point Pleasant he m.arrled — but the bride was not 
Prudence Hall. The engagement had been given up, and 
she was now the wife of a well-to-do Ohio farmer and the 
mother of his two children. 

Ten miles from Point Pleasant lived another maiden, 
Hannah Simpson, sole daughter of the house and heart of 
a thrifty farmer who had moved to the West two years 
before. She was born and reared in Pennsylvania, tw^enty 
miles from Philadelphia. For several generations her an- 
cestors had been American, though a family tradition 
alleged that originally they were Irish. Jesse describes 
her at this time as "an unpretending country girl, hand- 
some but not vain." She was thoroughly accomplished in 
all the duties of housewifery, and to great womanly sweet- 
ness added prudence, clear judgment, piety, and a gravity 
and thoughtfulness beyond her years. 

Never was Jesse Grant's good fortune greater than 
when, on the 24th of June, 1821, he married Hannah Simp- 
son. 

The young couple began housekeeping in a little frame 
dw^elling, a hundred yards from the Ohio river. Behind 
the house and the hamlet rose a bold hill. In front ran a 
little creek. Here the Ex-President of the United States 
was born, on the 27th day of April, 1822. Point Pleasant 
is a post village of the county, and is situated on the Ohio 
river, about twenty-five miles above Cincinnati. Clermont 
county is in the southwestern part of the State of Ohio, 
and has an area of 462 square miles, or 295,680 acres. 
The Ohio river forms the county boundary on the south- 
west, and the Little Miami river runs along its western 
lines. The land of the county Is well drained by the east 
fork of the LItde Miami river, into which the creeks mostly 





"'£Ujf 



(3«) 



32 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

run. The surface of the country Is of a rolling character, 
and Is quite hilly in the vicinity of the Ohio river. The 
soil generally Is of a rich nature, and the surface rock Is 
formed of the blue limestone. A railroad now passes 
along its northern border, some distance from Grant's 
birthplace ; but at the time when that general entered upon 
his career, the iron tramway was entirely unknown In that 
region of the country. 

Soon after the birth of his first son, a discussion occurred 
in the family In regard to the name which should be given 
him. His mother and one of his aunts proposed Albert, in 
honor of Albert Gallatin, at that time a prominent states- 
man. Some one else proposed Theodore, and his grand- 
father Simpson suggested Hiram. His step-grandmother, 
being a great student of history, and an ardent admirer of 
Ulysses,"proposed that name. After due deliberation he 
was christened Hiram Ulysses. 

The boyhood of Ulysses, as he was commonly called, 
passed in a comparatively new country, did not differ mate- 
rially from that of other boys surrounded by similar cir- 
cumstances. He began to manifest an independent, self- 
reliant and venturous disposldon at a very early age, and 
from the time he was first permitted to go out alone, he 
lost no opportunity of riding and breaking horses, driving 
teams, and helping his father In whatever work his strength 
and size would enable him to do. At the age of seven and 
a half years, during his father's absence, he harnessed a 
three-year-old colt to a sled, and hauled brush with him for 
an endre day. He became accustomed to harness horses 
when he was so small that he could not put the bridle or 
collar on without climbing into the manger, nor throw the 
harness over their backs without standing upon a half- 
bushel measure. Before he was ten years old he had got 
to be a skillful driver, and used to do full work in hauling 
wood, taking leather to Cincinnati and bringing passengers 
back to Georgetown, where the family then lived. He 
became a good rider at nine years of age, having begun, 
like most farmer boys, by riding the horses to water. 
Long before Ulysses had reached his twelfth year he could 



iiiiap"«'^»» 







34 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



ride any horse at full speed, standing upon his back and 
balancing himself by the bridle reins. His quiet and gen- 
tle disposition, together with a remarkable degree of firm- 
ness, rendered him particularly successful in controlling 
horses, and in breaking them to the saddle and harness. 
This he always did for his father, but his fame soon spread 
beyond the family circle and caused his talent to be called 
Into requisition by the neighbors who had troublesome 
hvirses to break. At that time pacing horses were in great 
demand for the saddle, and to teach a horse this gait 
required no slight skill and patience. Ulysses was quite 
an adept in this as in other things relating to horses, but 
from some idea of pride he would not exercise his skill for 
money, although not unwilling to do real work, or go on 
errands of business. One of his father's friends had a fine 
young horse which he wished to use as a riding horse, but 
he could not teach him to pace. Knowing Ulysses' un- 
willingness to set about such a task as this for hire, he 
engaged him to carry a letter to a neighboring town, and 
as the lad was riding away called out to him, "please teach 
that colt to pace." Ulysses returned the horse at night a 
perfect pacer, but having ascertained that the letter was 
simply sent to deceive him, he could never afterward be 
Induced to teach a horse to pace. 

It was an uneventful life in the little Ohio village. When 
Ulysses was three years old a second son was born to his 
parents, and named' Simpson. The two grew up together. 
Their school comrades often used, after the fashion of those 
days, to go home with the Grant boys in winter, and spend 
tlie evening before the great log-fire, which blazed on the 
kitchc-n hearth, playing '' iox and geese," "morris," and 
'• checkers," eating apples, cracking hickory-nuts, telling 
stories, propounding riddles, and ending the fun by sleep- 
ing together. 

Two brothers, who were their closest intimates, are still 
living in Georgetown. Both went through the Mexican 
War ; one has been a Democratic Representative in Con- 
gress, and the other, as a brigadier-general of volunteers, 
did gallant service during our great war. 



ANCESTRY. 55 

Ulysses was a very quiet but by no means a diffident 
boy. His father, who was fond and vain of his children, 
was given to putting them forward ; and Ulysses was the 
favorite, because he would do, or at least attempt, what- 
ever he was told. Both father and mother were members 
of the Methodist church, and there was a little meeting- 
house across the street. Methodist ministers frequently 
spent the night at the house. A visitor remembers one 
evening when Ulysses, then only seven or eight years old, 
at the call of his father, stepped out briskly, stood up in a 
corner, and recited : 

** You'd scarce expect one of my age 
To speak in public on the stage." 

He rattled it off hurriedly and mechanically, but still with 
great readiness. Daniel Webster, in boyhood, could not 
summon composure enough to "speak his piece," but 
Ulysses Grant could without the least diffidence. If any 
wiseacre had had opportunity to compare the two, his pro- 
phetic soul would undoubtedly have seen in the farmer's 
son a great orator in embryo, and, perchance, in the shy 
New Hampshire boy, the promise of a successful general. 

He accumulated a little money by carting wood, and 
driving passengers, who arrived in Georgetown by stage, 
to their homes in the adjacent country. So at nine, he 
boucrht a colt for seventeen dollars, and from that time was 
never without a horse of his own. He frequently traded, 
always had a little fund of money, and was thought to give 
indications of unusual business capacity, though he never 
manifested it in his personal affairs in after life. 

He was known far and near as the best horseman " in 
all the country round." When nine or ten years old, he 
had acquired such repute for fast riding, that horse-jockeys 
who had steeds suffering from a distemper, which was re- 
lieved by riding them so fast as to heat them, used to bring 
the animals to Georgetown, for the tanner's son to try 
them for a few miles at the break-neck gallop, in which his 
heart delighted. Neiehborinof farmers also brought refrac- 
tory horses for him to train and subdue. More than once 



36 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRaini'. 

the little fellow was seen racing around the public square 
upon a kicking, rearing, pitching beast, to which, with arms 
clasped about its neck, and fat bare feet pressed against Its 
flanks, the lad was clinging with the same tenacity which 
he manifested later in lite. 

A favorite amusement was to stand barefoot upon a 
sheepskin strapped on his horse's back to keep the rider's 
feet from slipping, and then put the animal on a fast gallop 
down to the brook or up the main street. Before he was 
twelve he learned to ride thus, standing only upon one foot, 
and holding by the bridle rein. The widow of Dr. Bailey, 
nearest neighbor to the Grants, says : 

"In general, Ulysses was exceedingly kind and amiable. 
Our boys never had the least dispute with him about any- 
thing except horses; but sometimes, when they galloped 
together down to the 'run ' to water, Ulysses would laugh 
at our boys, and tell them our horses were getting poor. 
This used to trouble them, and they would ask me, widi 
great anxiety, if ours really were thin and slow." 

One of the sons of this lady met his death through his 
fondness for horses. He was riding a refractory one which 
became frightened, reared, rolled over, and killed the 
rider. 

In this connection an anecdote is dropped by the pater- 
nal gossip, which deserves to be preserved as a graphic 
description of a scene through which many smart lads have 
passed, and as indicating in this particular instance some 
of that pluck, and tenacity of will, which distinguished the 
Wilderness campaign. " Once, when he was a boy, a show 
came along, in which there was a mischievous pony, trained 
to go round the ring like lightning; and he was expected 
to throw any boy that attempted to ride him. 

"'Will any boy come forward and ride this pony?' 
shouted the ring-master. 

"Ulysses stepped forward, and mounted the pony. The 
performance began. Round and round and round the ring 
went the ])ony, iaster and faster, making the greatest effort 
to dismount the rider; but Ulysses sat as steady as if he 
had grown to the pony's back. Presently out came a large 



ANCESTRY. 37 

monkey, and sprang up behind Ulysses. The people set 
up a great shout of laughter, and on the pony ran ; but it 
all produced no effect on the rider. Then the ring-master 
made the monkey jump up on to Ulysses' shoulders, stand- 
ing with his feet on his shoulders, and with his hands hold- 
ing on to his hair. At this there was another and a still 
louder shout; but not a muscle of Ulysses' face moved: 
there was not a tremor of his nerves. A {e.w more rounds, 
and the ring-master gave it up: he had come across a boy 
that the pony and the monkey both could not dismount." 

That quiet, fixed resolution, which was such a marked 
feature in his character, he possessed when a mere lad. 
His father possessed great confidence in his ability to take 
care of himself, and once sent him, when but twelve years 
of age, to Louisville, alone. We give the incident in Jesse 
Grant's language. He says: 

" It was necessary for me to have a deposition taken 
there, to be used in a law-suit in which I was engaged in 
the State of Connecticut. I had written more than once 
about it to my lawyers, but could not get the business done. 
• I can do it' said Ulysses. So I sent him on the errand 
alone. Before he started, I gave him an open letter that 
he might show the captain of the boat, or any one else, if 
he should have occasion, stating that he was my son, and 
was going to Louisville on my business. Going down, he 
happened to meet a neighbor with whom he was ac- 
quainted; so he had no occasion to use the letter. But 
when he came on board a boat, to return, the captain asked 
him who he was. He told him ; but the captain answered, 
*I cannot take you; you may be running away.' Ulysses 
then produced my letter, which put everything right ; and 
the captain not only treated him with great kindness, but 
took so much interest in him as to invite him to go as far 
as Maysville with him, where he had relatives living, free 
of expense. He brought back the deposition with him, and 
that enabled me to succeed in making a satisfactory adjust- 
mcmt of my suit." 

The father remembers also the following incident, of 
which doubtless similar may be related of hundreds of 



^8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Others who never reached any eminence, yet it has a pe- 
cuhar interest in the Hght of after events. He says, '' I 
will relate another circumstance which I have never men- 
tioned before, which you may use as you think proper. He 
was always regarded as extremely apt in figures. When he 
was ten years old a distinguished phrenologist came along 
and stayed several days in the place. He was frequently 
asked to examine heads blindfolded. Among others, Ulys- 
ses was placed in the chair. The phrenologist felt his head 
for several minutes without saying anything; at length, a 
noted doctor asked him if the boy had a capacity for mathe- 
matics. The phrenologist, after some further examination, 
said, * You need not be surprised if you see this boy fill the 
preside7itial chair some time.' " 

Now, whether the opinion of the phrenologist was worth 
anything or not, or whether it was a mere piece of flattery, 
or a scientific opinion, may not, perhaps, be of much con- 
sequence ; but one thing is certain, if he had not been dif- 
ferent from the ordinary class of boys of his age he never 
would have been selected as a subject for public examina- 
tion. This fact alone shows that he was a marked lad, 
possessing certain positive, distinct qualides which disdn- 
guished him from others. If it were not so, the examina- 
tion of his head would have been without significance. 
Many anecdotes are told of him when a litde older, showing 
that p-reat self-reliance which also formed so remarkable a 
trait of his manhood. 

The means for securing that mental discipline and cul- 
ture necessary to fit him for any position of eminence were 
wandng in the litde town where he resided. His moral 
training, however, was excellent. Though his parents 
were not the old rigid Scotch Covenanters, they had the 
Scotch probity and prudence, and inculcated right princi- 
ples into the boy, and it is said of him what can be said of 
few lads, that he was never known to tell a lie or use a 
profane word. 

He devoted himself to his father's business of tanning 
leather with reluctance, preferring to drive a team instead. 

But while he was thus growing a strong, broad-shoul- 



ANCESTRY. ^g 

dered young man in an obscure western village, he was 
not satisfied with his lot. Besides, his father felt that he 
ought to have the benefit of a better education than could 
be obtained at home. It was a subject of much anxious 
thought with him, for he believed that his son had capacity 
for a more important position than that which the trade of 
a tanner would give him. But his means were limited — the 
want of money, which chains so many gifted minds to the 
mere effort to obtain a livelihood in the dull routine in 
which they have been brought up, stood sadly in the way 
of young Grant being placed in the more enlarged sphere 
for which he seemed to be fitted. 

Young Grant had a very keen sense of justice. One 
day, playing with the Bailey boys, he knocked the ball 
through a window of their house. Rushing in, with his 
round face blushing scarlet, he said earnesdy to their 
mother: 

" Mrs. Bailey, I have broken your window, but I am 
going right up town to get another pane of glass for you, 
and have it put in at once." 

But he was too great a favorite with the lady, and, indeed, 
with all her family, for them to exact such a measure of 
justice from him. 

A litde brook ran beside the tan-yard. During a June 
freshet, when the lad was ten years old, it overflowed all 
the vats, and sent the leather and bark floating away. 
But the leather caught in thick willows, and the stream was 
soon full of men and delighted boys swimming in to bring 
it back. All was reclaimed, without serious injury, and 
Jesse's only loss was the valuable bark — that which was 
dry and unused floating off, but the old and water-soaked 
remaininof. 

He was extremely fond of skating, and learned it while 
very young. When nine or ten years old, he froze his feet 
from tight straps. Mrs. Grant, a physician on instinct, was 
on terms of intimacy with every conceivable malady that 
juvenile flesh is heir to, and had a remedy for it duly put 
away and labeled in some corner of her memory. Of 
course, such a mother is worth all the physicians in the 



40 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

world for little invalids, despite her harmless idiosyncrasies, 
one of whicli in her case found vent in administering salts 
to the children regularly, sick or well, at certain seasons 
of the year. This time she smoked the frozen feet of 
the young sufferer with hay, and then bound on slices of 
bacon to take out the frost. 

Ulysses and his comrades, when very young, used to sit 
barefooted on the bank of the little brook beside the tan- 
yard, fishing for "chubs" and "shiners," with liooks of 
bent pins. As ^hey grew older they angled for larger 
members of the fmny tribe a mile west of the town, in a 
considerable stream, which was there called White Oak 
Creek, but in New England would be dignified into a river. 
Here, too, was excellent bathing-ground. Ulysses was a 
capital swimmer and an expert diver, with unusual endur- 
ance in remaining under water. 

Hunting was a common amusement among the boys of 
the neighborhood. By day they pursued rabbits, gray 
squirrels, and partridges in the woods ; at night they had 
the more exciting sport of treeing raccoons with dogs, and 
then ft^lling the trees. In these diversions Ulysses seldom 
joined. While his comrades were playing, he was hauling 
loads for neighbors, or drivinor stacje passencrers home. 
Thus he was enabled to be a profitable customer for the 
village confecUonery, whose treasures he lavished with a free 
hand upon his pla)-mates and young ragamuffins generally. 

A month before Ulysses was eleven, an uncle by mar- 
riage, who was named Marshall, died near Deerfield, Ohio, 
the old home of the Grant family. Jesse immediately went 
to settle the affairs of his bereaved sister, and bring her and 
her five orphan children to Georgetown. Ulysses accom- 
panied him, and it was his first considerable journey. 

Taking steamer from Ripley to Wellsville, and stage 
thence to New Lisbon thirty-five miles, father and son made 
the last fifteen miles on horseback. They spent two or three 
weeks with Mrs. Marshall, selling at public auction all the 
family effects, except bedding, crockery, and other articles 
easy of transportation. Then, with the widow and children, 
they turned their faces homeward. One of the cousins, 




GRANT'S HEAD-QUARTERS NEAR FORT DONELSON. 




GRANT'S HEAD-QUARTERS NEAR VICKSBURG. 



ANCESTRY. 4 1 

James Marshall, was near the age of Ulysses ; and the two 
boys, riding on the coupling-pole behind the wagon, were 
delighted witJi the trip. 

Starting on a Monday afternoon, the party reached Deer- 
field, six miles distant, that night, and on Tuesday night, 
New Lisbon, where they "put up" at the village tavern. 
On Wednesday, finding their team overloaded, they char- 
tered a two-horse wagon, and evening found them at Wells- 
viile. There they took the steamer " Lady Byron," taking 
their horses and wagon on board, and descending the river. 
A broken wheel compelled the boat to stop at Wheeling for 
several hours. Ulysses and James strolled up through the 
streets, less sleepy then than now. While they were loiter- 
ing about the City Hotel, a traveller asked young Grant: 

"What will you take this trunk down to the steamer for?" 

"A fi'-penny bit," replied the lad. 

The five-penny bit, usually contracted to"fip" in Western 
mouths, was worth six and a quarter cents, an outlay which 
the extravagant traveller fancied he could afford. So 
Ulysses at one end, and James at the other, bore the heavy 
trunk down to the boat half a mile away, and earned their 
reward. It is to be hoped that they never in after-life did 
so much hard work for so little money. 

There Vv^as no wharf at Wheeling. The water was nearly 
level with the top of the stone wall, from which a staging 
extended to the boat. The steamer had on board many 
German emio^rants, orolnof to Louisville and Cincinnati. 
With genuine boyish fondness for mischief, the two lads so 
arranged the planks that the first person venturing upon 
them would tumble In. The first happened to be a little 
German boy habited in a red flannel dress, and not more 
than three years old. As he stepped upon it the staging 
gave way, and ''chuck''' he fell Into the water. The alarm 
was shouted, and, as he came up to the surface for the second 
time, some of his people caught him by the hair and lifted 
him out. 

The thoughtless boys were sadly frightened, but cautious 
enough to hold their peace, and unspeakably relieved to see 
the streaming young Teuton saved from drowning. 



42 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

The "Lady Byron" finally started again, and on Satur- 
day the travellers reached Maysville, where they remained 
several days with relatives, before riding to their home, 
twenty miles farther. Ulysses, on his return from this long 
journey, w^as looked up to by his playmates on account of 
the marvellous stories he had to tell of what he had seen. 

As Jesse Grant prospered, and his family increased in 
numbers, they required more room than the little family 
dwelling afforded, so after his return from Deerfield he 
added a spacious two-story house to the old one, which he 
left standing as an L. Ulysses drove the horses for haul- 
ing all the brick, stone, and sand. In a few^ months was 
completed the Grant homestead shown in our picture, and 
still unchanged. It stands on low ground, a hundred yards 
east of the Georgetown public square, a sober brick house, 
its front very near the street ; and one side shaded by tall 
locusts, and overlooking a smaller roadway which leads up 
past the old Methodist meeting-house and the Bailey resi- 
dence. In a hollow, on the opposite side of the main street, 
stood, and yet stands, the litde brick currier shop. Behind 
it was the tan-yard. Beside it, for a hundred feet, stretched 
a low shed — a mere roof supported by a skeleton of poles. 
Under this were piled many cords of oak bark, in the midst 
of which stood the bark-mill, with a hopper like an old- 
fashioned cider-mill. 

The bark, peeled from standing trees, is brought to the 
tan-yard in strips three feet long. In grinding, a boy stands 
holding one in his left hand, and, with a hammer in his right, 
breaks it into the hopper in pieces four or five inches long. 
Meanwhile, a horse trudging around a circle, and leading 
himself by means of a pole attached to the sweep which he 
draws, grinds the bark to powder. 

Not only is the work confining, but every time the beam 
comes around the boy must " duck," or it will strike his 
head. Ulysses heartily disliked all labor about the tan-yard, 
and had a tendency to make himself invisible whenever he 
suspected there was any to be done. But when his father 
left him to attend the bark mill, he would hire some other 
boy to take his place for twelve or fifteen cents a day, while 




GRANT'S BOYHOOD DAYS IN OHIO. 



(43) 



44 I^IFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

he, by driving a stage passenger or hauling a load, earned 
a dollar or a dollar and a half. The young speculator ac- 
cumulated money easily, and in the use of it was free, though 
not wasteful. 

Just before the lad was twelve, his father contracted to 
build a county jail. The job would require much hauling 
of stone, of bricks, and particularly of logs. The tanner 
had one very large horse, and Ulysses said : 

*' Father, if you will buy Paul Devore's horse to work 
beside ours, I can haul these logs for you." 

So Jesse purchased the animal for fifty-five dollars. 
Ulysses was proud of his fine-looking black horses, and 
named the new one " Dave," in irreverent compliment to 
David Devore, a Georgetown attorney. With them the lad 
did all the hauling. It was two miles from the woods to the 
site of the jail. The logs were a foot square and fourteen 
feet long, and required a great deal of hewing, as all the 
"sap" had to be cut off. It took eleven men to do the 
hewing, but only one to " score." The hewers loaded the 
logs, while the lad simply drove the team. 

One cloudy April morning when rain was threatened, 
Ulysses went as usual for his load. After a long trip, he 
came back with his logs, and as Jesse and the hired man 
were unloading them at the jail, he remarked: 

" Father, I reckon It's hardly worth while for me to go 
again to-day; none of the hewers are In the woods. There 
is only one load left ; if I get that now, there will be none 
for me to haul to-morrow mornlnor." 

" Where are the hewers ? " 

"At home, I suppose. They haven't been in the woods 
this morning." 

" Who loaded these Ioqts ? " 

" Dave and me." 

" Wliat do you mean by telling me such a story?" asked 
the clear-headed, Indignant father. 

" It Is the truth ; I loaded the logs with no help but 
Dave's." 

It was the truth. For this hauling, the body of the 
wagon had been removed, and the logs were carried upon 
the axles. It was a hard job for several men to load. They 



ANCESTRY. 45 

would take the wheels off on one side, let the axles down 
to the ground, lift on the squared logs with handspikes, 
then pry the axles up with levers, and put the wheels on 
again. That a boy could do this alone was incredible ; and 
Jesse inquired : 

" How in the world did you load the wagon ? " 

" Well, father, you know tliat sugar-tree we saw yesterday, 
W'hich is half fallen, and lies slanting, with the top caught in 
another tree. I hitched Dave to the logs and drew them up 
on that ; then I backed the wagon up to it, and hitched Dave 
to them again, and, one at a time, snaked them forward upon 
the axles." 

The ingenious lad had used the trunk of the fallen maple 
as an inclined plane, and alter hauling the logs upon it, so 
that they nearly balanced, had drawn them endwise upon 
his wagon underneath with litde difficulty. The feat made 
him quite famous in the neighborhood. Did it not involve 
as much inventiveness, patience, and fertility of resource as 
the wonderful campaign which ended in the capture of 
Vicksburg? 

The jail was finished by the ist of December, and then 
Jesse sold his wagon to a citizen of Aberdeen, twenty-one 
miles away. Ulysses was sent to take it there, with two 
horses, one which the purchaser had left, and a beautiful 
bright bay, not yet four years old, which he himself had 
owned only a few weeks, and had never tried in harness. 

For the first ten miles the team went well ; but then, 
near Ripley, passing a farmhouse where the butcliering of 
hogs was going on, the sight and smell of it made the colt 
quite frantic. In a twinkling- he kicked himself out of the 
harness, tearing it to shreds. Ulysses sprang from the 
wagon, and firmly held the frightened beast by the bit until 
he was quiet. Then, knowing- that he was, at least, an 
admirable riding-horse, Ulysses put on his saddle, brought 
for the return trip, and galloped into Ripley. There lie 
asked of the first acquaintance he m^et : 

"Are there any horse-buyers in town?" 

*' Yes, there is one collecting horses for New Orleans; 
he is to leave with them in a few days. I reckon he is over 
there at the stable." 



46 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

To the stable Ulysses rode, and, finding his man, ac- 
costed him : 

" My horse Is for sale; are you buying? " 

*' Yes ; what do you ask for him ? " 

" Sixty-five dollars, and the use of him or some other 
horse to take my wagon to Aberdeen." 

The beauty of the little steed Interested the buyer, and 
he answered : 

**I will give you sixty dollars." 

" I can't take that ; he is worth more." 

" Well, I will split the difference with you, and give you 
sixty-two dollars and fifty cents." 

"All right." 

The bargain was closed, the horse delivered, and the 
money paid. But then the buyer, looking again at the 
chubby lad, whose gravity of demeanor had prevented his 
diminutiveness from being noticed, added : 

" You are a very small boy ; I am afraid it is hardly safe 
to buy of you." 

" Oh, if that Is all, I can satisfy you," replied Ulysses. 
And he went and brought Captain Knight, an old family 
friend, who testified : 

" It is all right : any trade you make with this boy Is just 
as sound as if you made it with his father." 

The buyer, determined not to lose sight of his new pony, 
furnished Ulysses with an old safe horse to Aberdeen, 
which the boy left in Ripley on his return, and thence went 
by stage. 

The next year, a roving New York journeyman, with a 
weakness for whiskey, worked In the tan-yard. Once, 
having exhausted all his money, he took six calfskins 
belonging to his employer. Not daring to offer them for 
sale, he consulted a little shoemaker, who betrayed him. 
Jesse found the hidden plunder, and soon after, meeting 
his speculating workman in the village tavern, ordered him 
to leave town. But the journeyman was obstinate, would 
not go, and even drew a knife upon Jesse. The broad- 
shouldered, powerful tanner took the weapon away from 
him, sent Ulysses for his cowhide, and laid it over the 



ANCESTRY. 47 

culprit's back half a dozen times with all his power. But 
the victim, neither frightened nor hurt, stood his ground till 
some village "roughs" marched him out of town, with 
warning never to come back. He never did. 

While Grant was at school, his companions used to tell 
a story about a horse-trade that he was once engaged in. 
It appears that when he was about twelve years of age, his 
father sent him to purchase a horse of a farmer named 
Ralston, who resided some short distance in the country. 
The elder Grant wanted the horse, but still desired to get 
it as cheaply as possible. Before starting, the old gende- 
man impressed upon young Grant's mind that fact in these 
words : 

" Ulysses, when you see Mr. Ralston, tell him I have sent 
you to buy his horse, and offer him fifty dollars for it. If 
he will not take that, offer him fifty-five dollars, and rather 
than you should come away without the horse, you had 
better give him sixty dollars." 

Off started the boy, and in due course of time arrived at 
Ralston's farm-house. He had carefully studied over in his 
mind his father's instructions, and of course intended to do 
as his parent had told him. Mr. Ralston, however, threw 
him off his balance by putting the following direct but 
natural question to him: 

" How much did your father tell you to give for him ? " 

Young Ulysses had always had it impressed upon his 
mind by his mother that the truth must be spoken at all 
times, and therefore he replied : 

" Why, father told me to offer you fifty dollars at first ; 
and if that would not do, to give you fifty-five dollars ; and 
rather than come away without the horse I was to pay sixty 
dollars." 

Of course, Ralston could not sell the horse for less than 
sixty dollars. 

"I am sorry for that," returned Grant, ''for, on looking 
at the horse, I have determined not to give more than fifty 
dollars for it, although father said I might give sixty. You 
may take fifty if you like, or you may keep the horse." 

Ulysses rode the horse home. 



48 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Young Grant had been brought up to revere and esteem 
the character of Washington as the redeemer oi his country, 
and so great an impression did the teachings of his friends 
have upon him, that, even as a boy, he would never allow 
that name or memory to be insulted in his presence. 

It so happened that the brother of General Grant's father 
had settled in Canada, and was impressed with a strong 
antipathy to the government of the United States. Not- 
withstanding this fact, the Canadian Grant did not object to 
send his son John to the same school where young Ulysses 
was studying, so that he might be able to gain a better 
education than he could at that time obtain in Canada. 

John had been brought up with the same feelings as his 
parents, and it was very natural for him occasionally to 
loosen his tongue in a disparaging manner upon American 
aftairs, to the praise and glory of the " old country." While 
it was confined to remarks about Great Britain, young 
Grant would listen, and argue all in good part ; but on one 
occasion the following conversation ensued, after one of 
their debates on the merits of the two styles of government, 
the love of country, and duty to rulers. 

"Ulysses," said John, "you talk a great deal about 
Washineton. He was nothinor better than a rebel. He 
fought against his king." 

"Now, look here, Jack," returned Grant quickly, "you 
must stop that, or I will give you a thrashing. iMother 
says I must not fight, but must forgive my enemies. You 
may abuse me as much as you please; but if you abuse 
Washington, I'll off coat and let into you, if you were ten 
times my cousin, and then mother may afterwards whip me 
as much as she likes." 

Jack was determined not to give way in his assertion, 
and Grant was as firm in his defence of his country's idol, 
until, at last, from words, they came to hard blows. 

During the contest Jack got the worst of it, but still Grant 

did not escape scot free — his face betra\i ng evidences of 

the struggle — and on reaching home his mother cried out: 

"So, young man, you have been fighting, notwithstanding 

all I have said to you about it! " 



ANCESTRY. 



49 



Ulysses explained the whole of the circumstances of the 
case in a straightforward manner, without either addition 
or detraction. The good and worthy matron, with the 
determination that her son should respect her admonitions, 
began making preparations to give young Ulysses the 
promised castigation, when her husband interfered to pre- 
vent the boy being flogged : 

"I tell thee what It is, wife," said the old gendeman, "the 
boy does not deserve to be punished. He has only stood 
up for his country, and he, that, as a boy, will stand up and 
fiorht in defence of the honor and integrity of the name of 
Washington, will rise, if God spares his life, to be a man 
and a Christian too." 

At about the age of twelve he displayed, In a remarkable 
manner, that calmness and presence of mind which has so 
eminently characterized his career as a soldier and general. 
Having been sent with a light wagon and pair of horses to 
the village of Augusta, in Kentucky, twelve miles from 
Georgetown, he permitted himself to be persuaded to re- 
main all night, in order to take back two young women 
who could not be ready to start before morning. The 
Ohio river had swollen rapidly in the meantime, "and the 
back-water in White Oak Creek, across which his route 
lay, had risen so much that when he reached it In returning 
he was surprised to find, after the first few steps, that his 
horses and wagon were swimming. The young women, 
finding themselves in water up to their waists, became 
badly frightened, and began at once to cry for help. In 
the midst of this exciting scene Ulysses, who was on the 
front seat, coolly guiding his horses towards the opposite 
bank, turned to the women, and with an air of perfect 
assurance, said: "Keep quiet; I'll take you through 
safe !" 

He was fond of all the games and sports of boyhood. 
His resolute spirit and cool temper made him a leader 
among his companions; but his disposition inclined him to 
seek the society of persons older than himself Those 
who have had the good fortune to know him in manhood, 
will readily perceive that he must have been an exceed- 



50 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Ingly good-natured, amiable, patient, cheerful, modest, 
light-hearted boy ; full of courage, good sense, and self- 
reliance. He could read by the time he was seven years 
old, and was fond of going to school, learning easily and 
rapidly whatever was taught, but showing particular apti- 
tude in mathematics. 

He had always a peaceable and even disposition, without 
any inclination to quarrel, and yet he would never permit 
himself to be imposed upon, neither would he stand by and 
see a little boy abused by a larger one. His sense of jus- 
tice and fair play would always cause him to join the 
weaker side, and fight it through on that line at every 
hazard. He never used a profane or obscene word, no 
matter how great his anger or provocation. " Confound it " 
is the hardest phrase he ever gave utterance to. 

Ulysses inherited many of his best traits from his mother. 
The old residents of Georgetown speak ot her with ex- 
traordinary enthusiasm and affection. She was amiable, se- 
rene, even-tempered, thoroughly self- forgetful, kind and 
considerate to all, and speaking ill of none. Her children 
she governed with 'tender affection, and without the rod; 
and in return they were tractable and well behaved, never 
boisterous nor rude in the family circle. She was exceed- 
ingly reticent and exceedingly modest. Whatever she 
thought of her boys and girls in her mother-heart, she 
never praised them before others. Even now, though feel- 
ing high and just pride in her illustrious son, and tond of 
reading all that is said of him, she not only refrains from 
boasting of him, but sometimes blushes like a girl, and 
leaves tlie room when his praises are sounded in her ears ; 
for it seems akin to hearing self-praise, which she regards 
with unmitigated horror. In her old age she has calm, 
winning manners, and a facc^, still sweet and still young in 
the nicest sense of Holmes: 

" Fi r him in vain the envious sea-^ons roll, 
Who bears eternal summer in his soul.'' 

Ulysses was sent to school before he was four years old, 
but he began so young to drive a team and make himself 



ANCESTRY. 



51 



useful to his father, that his education was sadly neo-jected. 
After he was eleven he went only in the winter term, aver- 
aginor about three months. Even then his attendance was 
irregular whenever he could hnd passengers to drive home. 
or neighbors who wanted to visit Cincinnati. The plain^ 
one-story brick building, baldly fronting the street, without 
any pleasant surroundings, where the village youth first 
quaffed from the "Pierian Spring," is faithfully shown in 
our picture. Its exterior is still unchanged; but no more 
emerge "the playful children just let loose from school," 
for it is now occupied as a dwelling by a family of negroes. 

He was not deemed a brilliant scholar except In arithme- 
tic, in which he excelled his class. In other branches he 
was about the average. But no one in the school could 
draw^ such horses upon his slate as young Grant, and in 
this exercise he w^as exceedingly diligent. He would sit, 
too, and reflect for hours with his slate or book hugged up 
against his breast, and his head a little cast dowmt His 
ordinary nickname was " Ulyss," or simply "Lyss;" but some 
of his comrades called him "Texas," because his father had 
visited that province and published a long account of his 
trip. Others called him "Hug," from his initials, H. U. G., 
and others still travestied his name to "Useless." 

Notwithstanding his expertness at skating, swimming, 
and riding, he was awkward in other out-door sports. But 
he had unusual fortitude, and though at ball-playing he 
was a very poor dodger, no ball could hit him hard enough 
to make him cry, or even wince. 

He attended frequent evening spelling-schools, and also 
a juvenile debating club, at which, however, he never spoke. 
Though seeming to care litde for amusements, he went with 
the rest to the evening gatherings of boys and girls, play- 
ing his part creditably at riddles, puzzles, and other games, 
and not shrinking from the endless juvenile kissing involved 
in forfeits, though he had no special fondness for the society 
of the opposite sex. One litde girl only was a pardcular 
favorite, and she continued so until he grew to manhood. 
But she became a staid setded matron, and lived near 
Georgetown, Ohio. 



52 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

In brief, Ulysses was a sober, thoughtful boy, who pre- 
ferred the society of men to that of younger companions, 
but always as a modest and quiet listener rather than a 
talker. He was temperate — much less inclined to whiskey 
than most young men in that convivial region, for whoever 
had o-rown virtuous, Brown county willed that there should 
be cakes and ale. 

Military traditions were among the familiar things of his 
childhood: stories of Samuel and Noah Grant in the old 
French war, and of his grandfather's exploits in the eight 
years of the Revoludon. The military spirit also was fer- 
vent in the vicinity ; he saw much of company drill, and 
never missed the general muster in August. On this grand 
occasion as many as three thousand citizen-soldiers were 
somedmes drilled by their officers through the long summer 
day, with more than ordinary zeal and diligence. Even 
the local names betokened an admiradon of military heroes. 
Ripley was so called in honor of General Ripley; Scott 
township, of Winfield Scott; and Brown county, of Ethan 
Allen Brown, all famous in the war of 1812. 

A Philadelphia journalist, who was a native of the same 
village — a litde boy, who, in his own phrase, " used to hang 
around the skirts of Grant's 'wamus,'" writes: 

"A brother of the General was a fellow-' devil' in the 
printing-office in which we were then the younger imp. 
And through him we became acquainted with Ulysses, or 
'Lyss," as he was called by the boys. He was then a 
stumpy, freckle-faced, big-headed country lad of fifteen or 
thereabouts, working in his father's tan-yard; and we often 
stood by his side and exercised our amateur hand, under 
his direcdon, in breaking bark for the old bark-mill down 
in the hollow. Though sneered at for his awkwardness by 
the scions of noble Kentucky, who honored Georgetown 
with their presence, Ulysses was a favorite with the smaller 
boys of the village, who had learned to look up to him as 
a sort of a protector. 

"We well remember the stir created by the appointment 
of the tanner's son to a cadetship at West Point. The 
surprise among the sons of our doctors, lawyers, and store- 



ANCESTRY. 53 

keepers was something wonderful. Indeed, none of us 
boys, high or low, rich or poor, could clearly imagine how 
Uncle Sam's schoolmasters were going to transform our 
somewhat 021 /re-look'mcr comrade into our dcau ideal of 
dandyism — a West Pointer. But the rude exterior of the 
bark-grinder covered a wealth of intellect, which, of course, 
we youngsters were not expected to be cognizant of. 
Modest and unassuming, though determined, self-reliant and 
decisive then, as he still seems to be, we mistook his shy, 
retiring disposition for slowness, and, looked up to as he 
was by us all, we must confess there was much joking at 
his expense as we gathered of evenings in the court-house 
square." 

Besides Ulysses there were in due season five other 
children — Simpson, Clara, Virginia, Orvil L., and Mary 
Frances. 

When Ulysses was nearly fourteen, his life was varied 
by a winter at Maysville, Kentucky. The schools there 
were better than in Georgetown, and to their advantages 
he was bid by the widow of his uncle, Peter Grant, who 
resided there. Two years later he was sent for a few 
months to the Presbyterian Academy at Ripley, where he 
boarded with Marion Johnson. 

He was a plant of slow growth; looking little like his 
father, but much like his aunt, Mrs. Rachael Tompkins, of 
Charlestown, West Virginia, and inheriting the "Grant 
face," with its Scotch look of strength, spirit, and deter- 
mination, and, when smiling, its peculiar twist of the under 

lip. 

Thus the boy grew up in a pleasant, well-ordered family, 
trained by a thoughtful father of great energy and integrity, 
and by a mother so tender, so faithful, so calm, so heavenly 
tempered, that former neighbors speak of her as men are 
wont to speak only of their own mothers. In this home he 
was surrounded by pure influences only — a religious house- 
hold, the frugality and simplicity of working people in 
humble life, the hospitality and open-handed kindness of 
a new country. On the other hand, schools were poor and 
infrequent, the standard of public morality none of the 



54 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

highest, and the temptations to excess in drink many and 
powerful. 

With him the home influence proved the stronger, and 
at seventeen years of age he was noted as an honorable, 
trustworthy youth, above all meanness, incapable of any 
crooked ways. 

Fortunately for the country his father did not fancy the 
plan of allowing his son to be a farmer or trader, but 
sagaciously suggested the idea of sending him to West 
Point. Fortunately, too, no great difficulty was encoun- 
tered in securine a cadet's warrant, through the kind offices 
of Senator Morris, and the Hon. Thomas L. Hamar. The 
last official act of the latter as member of Congress was to 
make the nomination of Ulysses S. Grant to the Secretary 
of War as a suitable person to receive the appointment of 
cadet at the United States Military Academy. 

It seems that when his father solicited his appointment as 
cadet, he designated him as Ulysses, and that the member 
of Congress who made the nomination, knowing that his 
mother's maiden name was Simpson, and perhaps that she 
had a son also named Simpson, sent in the name as Ulysses 
S. Grant instead of Hiram Ulysses Grant. As a matter of 
course, the cadet warrant was made out in the exact name 
of the person nominated, and although the young candidate 

mifrht have written his true name on the re^rister when he 

. ... ^ 

presented himself for admission it would have probably re- 
sulted in his suspension till the warrant of appointment 
could be corrected. Foreseeing this trouble and wishing 
to avoid it he entered the academy as Ulysses S. Grant, 
and trusted to getting his name set right at some future 
day. This, however, he did not succeed in accomplishing, 
but in order that there should be nothing lost on that score, 
his classmates and comrades, looking about for a suitable 
nickname, gave him the familiar appellation of Sam, which 
was often expanded into Uncle Sam. Since arriving at the 
age of manhood, he has not regarded the S. in his name as 
having any signification whatever. 



CHAPTER 11. 

WEST POINT AND THE MEXICAN WAR. 

Ulysses S. Grant enters West Point — Submits readily to Discipline — His C'jiti?smat2s — 
Pie Graduates Twenty-first in his Class — Appointed Brevet Second-I-ieutenant — 
Reports for Duty — Jefferson Barracks — Second Lieutenant in Seventh Infantry — 
Mexico — The Siege of Vera Cruz — Cerro Gordo — His Bravery at El Molino del 
Rey — First Lieutenant — Capture of the City of Mexico — IJrevet Captain — Married 
at St. Louis — Accompanies his Regiment to California — Serves in Oregon — Pro- 
moted Captain — Resigns and Returns to St. Louis. 

On the first day of July, 1839, Ulysses S. Grant, then 
about seventeen years of age and slightly above five feet in 
height, was regularly enrolled amongst the cadets at the 
Military Academy. 

When the young cadet entered the West Point Institu- 
tion, he had to submit to a thorough physical and mental 
examination, to see whether he w^as fit to enter upon the 
life of a soldier, and was possessed of the proper mental 
talents, to make him competent to be trained as an officer. 
He passed the examination successfully and was admitted 
into the fourth class, where his studies consisted of mathe- 
matics, English grammar, including etymological and rhe- 
torical exercises, composition, declamation, geography of 
the United States, French, and the use of small arms. In 
the camp, for the cadets have to live part of the summer 
months in tents as if in the field, he ranked as a private of 
the battalion, and had to submit to all the inconveniences 
that privates in camp have to suffer. 

The battalion of cadets having removed from barracks to 
the usual summer encampment, young Grant soon found 
himself, in common with his class-mates, rapidly inducted 
into all the mysteries of cadet life. Under the skillful hand 
of a third classman, w^ho had already been thoroughly 
'* set up as a soldier," he was rapidly taught the military po- 

C55) 



56 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

sition, squad drill, and manual of arms. Guard duty, field 
artillery, and academic exercises followed in their turn. 
Having satisfactorily passed the semi-annual January ex- 
amination, which is usually fatal to the hopes of dull and 
incorrioible candidates, he subscribed to the oath of alle- 
giance to the United States, and bound himself to serve the 
nation honestly and faithfully against all its enemies and 
opposers whatsoever. Grant did not take a high position 
in his class, except in mathematics and the kindred studies, 
— engineering and military science. He excelled in all 
military exercises, and as might have been supposed, sur- 
passed nearly all of his class-mates in horsemanship, and 
the cavalry drill. He had the good luck to escape much 
of the playful hazing usually inflicted upon the new cadets 
of that day, though he doubtless received enough of it to 
give him a relish when he got to be a third classman for 
running it judiciously upon those who came after him. 

During the year 1840 he was advanced into the third class 
of the West Point Academy. Here he ranked as corporal 
in the cadet battalion, and his studies consisted of higher 
mathematics, French, drawing, and the duties of a cavalry 
soldier. In this last study he received practical instruc- 
tions for sixteen weeks, so as to make him a good horse- 
man. He progressed steadily, but not rapidly. He how- 
ever did not fall back from any advance he had made, and 
if he only gained one seat at a time, he held on to that, 
with the intention of never ao^ain o^oino^ below the cadet 
sitting next lower in his class. 

At the end of his second year he was granted the usual 
furlough of two months, and, after a visit to his home, re- 
turned to his studies, with renewed vigor and determina- 
tion, heightened by the approaching prospect of honorable 
graduation, at the end of his term. 

The daily routine of cadet-life is somewhat monotonous. 
Drill and study are the accustomed order, relieved only by 
the evening dress-parade, the inviiing ramble through 
scenery charming alike by natural beauty and historic in- 
terest, the "Board of Visitors," annual encampments, grad- 
uations, and hops. Martial law governs this military post; 




BUILDINGS AND PARADE GROUND AT WEST POINT. 

(57) 



58 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

and it is an efficient curb upon habits of irregularity and 
dissipation. Temperance and continence, within its juris- 
diction, forfeit their place as virtues ; for they are enforced 
upon the young soldier by inexorable necessity. Even a 
stolen visit to Benny Havens, a rollicking song by steakh, 
the smuggling-in per steamer of contraband packages, 
under the pains and penalties of a court-martial, are too 
excruciating substitutes for genuine sport to be very se- 
ductive. 

Grant encountered the severe exactions of the West Point 
course with no preparatory education worthy of the name. 
*' Hasten slowly " was written on his forehead early in life ; 
and those who knew him best expected from him a persis- 
tent rather than a brilliant scholarship in the intellectual 
exercises of the institution, and decided superiority only in 
the practical departments of military instruction. Both ex- 
pectations were justified by his career as a cadet. Abstract 
mathematics, topographical engineering, and the science of 
Vv'ar, were conquered by his characteristic tenacity of will. 
Practical engineering succumbed with less difficulty ; while 
infantry, artillery, and cavalry tactics were easily mastered. 

He passed with honors the first examination, and all the 
subsequent ones with no dishonor; earning successively 
the rank of corporal, sergeant, and commissioned officer 
of cadets. 

Cadet Grant, during 1841, entered the second class of 
the United States Military School at West Point, obtaining 
with this chanee the rank of a sero;eant of cadets. His 
studies now were somewhat more laborious ; but still Grant 
persevered, and gradually mastered them. From Sep- 
tember, 1 841, to June, 1842, he was engaged in the study 
of natural and experimental philosophy, chemistry, and 
drawing, and in receiving practical instruction in horseman- 
ship. During the summer months he was again encamped, 
and was well drilled, in both infantry and artillery tactics. 
He passed out of this class with credit. 

During the year 1842 the young soldier passed into the 
first and concluding class of instruction of the academy ; ac- 
quired a practical knowledge of the use of the rifled mus- 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 59 

[cet, the field-piece, mortar, siege, and seacoast guns, small 
sword and bayonet, as well as of the construction of field- 
works, and the fabrication of all munitions and material oi 
war. 

The cadet who graduated first in young Grant's class was 
William Benjamin Franklin, who entered the Topographi- 
cal Engineer Corps ; and having passed through a series 
of adventures under various commanders, was, in 1864, 
the general commanding the Nineteenth Army Corps, in 
the Department of the Gulf, under General Banks. 

The names of the next three graduates do not now ap- 
pear In the Army List of the United States. 

Wm. F. Reynolds graduated fifth in the class, entered 
the Infantry service, and was appointed an aid on the staff 
of General Fremont, commanding the Mountain Depart- 
ment, with the rank of colonel, from the 31st day of March, 
1862. 

The next graduate was Isaac F. Oulmby. He had en- 
tered the artillery service, and had been professor at West 
Point, but had retired to civil life. The rebellion, hov/- 
ever, brought him from his retirement, and he went to the 
field at the head of a regiment of New York volunteers. 
He afterwards became a brigadier-general In the Army of 
the Potomac. 

Roswell S. Ripley, the author of " The War with Mex- 
ico," graduated seventh ; but his name does not now appear 
in the official Army Register of the United States, as he 
had attached himself to the Confederate cause. 

The next graduate was John James Peck, who entered 
the artillery service, and was, on January ist, 1864, the com- 
mander of the district of and army in North Carolina, which 
then formed a portion of General Buder's department. 

John P. Johnstone, the daring artillery lieutenant, who 
fell gallandy at Contreras, Mexico, was the next graduate. 

General Josepli Jones Reynolds was the next In grade. 
This officer had gained great credit while In the army, as 
a professor of sciences ; but had resigned some time, when 
the rebellion broke out. He was, however, in 1861, again 
brought forward as a general of three months' volunteers, 



6o LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

under General McClellan, in Western Virginia; was after- 
wards commissioned by the President ; and latterly became 
attached to the Army of the Cumberland. He served on 
the staff of the general commanding that army, with the 
rank of major-general, until General Grant assumed com- 
mand of the military division embracing the Departments 
of Ohio, Tennessee, and Cumberland, wdien he was trans- 
ferred to New Orleans. 

The eleventh graduate was James Allen Hardle, who 
during the war of the rebellion became an assistant ad- 
jutant-general of the Army of the Potomac, with the rank 
of colonel. 

Henry F. Clarke graduated twelfth, entered the artillery 
service, gained brevets in Mexico, and became chief com- 
missary of the Army of the Potomac, during the war of 
the rebellion, with the rank of colonel. 

Lieutenant Booker, the next in grade, died w^hile in ser- 
vice at San Antonio, Texas, on June 26th, 1849. 

The fourteenth graduate might have been a prominent 
officer of the United States army, had he not deserted the 
cause of his country, and attached himself to the enemy. 
He had not even the excuse of "going with his State," for 
he w^as a native of New Jersey, and was appointed to the 
army from that State. His name is Samuel G. French, 
major-general of the Confederate army. 

The' next graduate was Lieutenant Theodore L. Chad- 
bourne, who was killed in the batde of Resaca de la Palma, 
on May 9th, 1846, after distinguishing himself for his 
bravery at the head of his command. 

Christopher Colon Augur, one of the commanders of the 
Department of Washington, and major-general of volun- 
teers, was the next in grade. 

Franklin Gardner, a native of 'New York, and an ap- 
pointee fron-i the State of Iowa, graduated seventeenth In 
General Grant's class. At the time of the rebellion he de- 
serted the cause of the United States and joined the enemy. 
He was disgracefully dropped from the rolls of the United 
States army, on May 7th, 1 861, became a major-general in the 
Confederate service and had to surrender his orarrison at Port 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 6 1 

Hudson, July 9th, 1863, through the reduction of Vicksburg 
by his junior graduate, U. S. Grant. 

Lieutenant George Stevens, who was drowned In the 
passage of the Rio Grande, May i8th, 1846, was the next 
graduate. 

The nineteenth graduate was Edmund B. Hohoway, of 
Kentucky, who obtained a brevet at Contreras, and was a 
captain of infantry in the United States regular army at the 
commencement of the rebellion. Although his State re- 
mained in the Union, he threw up his commission on May 
14th, 1861, and joined the Confederates. 

The graduate that immediately preceded General Grant 
was Lieutenant Lewis Neill, who died on January 13th, 
1850, while in service at Fort Croghan, Texas. 

Joseph H. Potter, of New Hampshire, graduated next 
after the hero of Vicksburg. During the war of the re- 
bellion he became a colonel of volunteers, retaining his 
rank as captain in the regular army. 

Lieutenant Robert Hazlitt, who was killed in the storm- 
ing of Monterey, September 21st, 1846, and Lieutenant 
Edwin Howe, who died while in service at Eort Leaven- 
worth, March 31st, 1850, were the next two graduates. 

Lafayette Boyer Wood, of Virginia, was the twenty-fifth 
graduate. He Is no longer connected with the service, 
having resigned several years before the rebellion. 

The next graduate was Charles S. Hamilton, who for 
some time commanded, as major-general of volunteers, a 
district under General Grant, who at that time was chief of 
the Department of the Tennessee. 

Captain William K. Van Bokkelen, of New York, who was 
cashiered for Confederate proclivities, on May 8th, 1 861, was 
the next graduate, and was followed by Alfred St. Amand 
Crozet, of New York, who had resigned the service several 
years before the breaking out of the civil war, and Lieu- 
tenant Charles E. James, who died at Sonoma, CaL, on 
June 8th, 1849. 

The thirtieth graduate was the gallant General Frederick 
Steele, who participated In the Vicksburg and Mississippi 
campaigns, as division and corps commander under Gen* 



62 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

eral Grant, and afterwards commanded die Army of 
Arkansas. 

The next graduate was Captain Henry R. Selden, of Ver- 
mont, and of the Fifth United States Infantry. 

General Rufus Ingalls, quartermaster-general of the 
Army of the Potomac, graduated No. 32, and entered the 
mounted rifle regiment, but was found more valuable in the 
Quartermaster's Department, in which he held the rank of 
m.ajor from January 12th, 1862, with a local rank of briga- 
dier-general of volunteers from May 23, 1863. 

Major Frederick T. Dent, of the Fourth United States 
Infantry, and Major J. C. McFerran, of the Quartermaster's 
Department, were the next two graduates. 

The thirty-fifth graduate was General Henry Moses 
Judah, who commanded a division of the Twenty-third 
Army Corps during its operadons after the Confederate 
cavalry general, John H. Morgan, and in East Tennessee, 
during the fall of 1863. 

The remaining four graduates were Norman Elting, who 
resigned the service on October 29th, 1846 ; Cave J. Couts, 
who was a member of the State Constitutional Convendon 
of California during the year 1849; Charles G. Merchant, 
of New York ; and George C. McClelland, of Pennsylva- 
nia, no one of whom is now connected with the United 
States service. 

It is very interesting to look over the above list to see 
how the twenty-first graduate has outstripped all his seniors 
in grade, showing plainly that true talent will ultimately 
make its way, no 'matter how modest the possessor may be, 
and notwithstanding all the opposition that may be placed 
in its w^ay by others. 

With a head stuffed with the learning of the school ; 
with ambition kindled, and patriotism exalted, by the genius 
of the place ; with a mind skilled to manoeuvre, attack, and 
defend ; a hand adroit in piling up redoubts and stockades, 
and in digging rifle-pits and intrenchments, and apt in con- 
structing fascines, hurdles, and sap-rollers ; wiih all his sen- 
sibilities vivid, all his senses keen, intent, animated, the 
model of physical power and acdvity, Cadet Grant is 
launched into the stormy ocean of life. 




LIEUT. GRANT AT THE AGE OF TWENTY-TWO. 

(63) 



64 LII^'E OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Leaving the Academy, Grant went as far as Philadelphia 
with his classmate, Frederick T. Dent, of St. Louis, thence 
to Washington, and thence to his home in Ohio. At the 
final examination, his chief achievement was with his favor- 
ite horse, York. In presence of the board of visitors he 
made the famous leap of six feet and two or three inches. 

His career at West Point had been altogether unnotice- 
able. His scholastic standing was about the average. 
His reputation for integrity and fairness was high, and his 
observance of the truth so strict that he never indulged in 
the sliehtest exae^eratlon. But neither classmates nor 
professors fancied that he was born great, or going to 
achieve greatness, or likely to have greatness thrust upon 
him. 

In 1843 the army was only 7,500 men strong, and scat- 
tered in small squads over our immense area of territory. 
Garrison-life at this time was languid beyond all expression, 
and was chiefly occupied with expedients for killing time. 

To subject a man for four or five years to the incessant 
application required by the West Point curriculum, to 
sharpen up all the powers of his mind to their keentst 
edge, to prepare him by every mental and athletic drill for 
unflagging labor, and then forthwith send him to mildew 
and to rust at some desolate post garrisoned only by a ser- 
geant's command, is to condemn him at once to self-tor- 
ment. And yet this was the uniform habit of the Govern- 
ment some forty-five years ago: this was the process to 
which the brevetted second-lieutenants of 1843 were sub- 
jected. 

On the day subsequent to his graduating, the ist of 
July, 1843, he entered the United States army as a Brevet 
Second-Lieutenant of infantry, and his name was entered 
upon the roll of the Fourth regiment of regular infantry, 
then stationed in Missouri and Missouri Territory, with Its 
head-quarters partly at Camp Salubrity, La., and partly at 
Jefferson Barracks, near St. Louis. 

Early In November, after the three months' leave of ab- 
sence usually granted to the graduating class of cadets, 
which he spent among his friends and relatives in Ohio, he 




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Head-Quarters Armies of the United States, 
Washington, D. C, ^<?/^. ^th, 1866. 

Dear Ingalls : — My office was crowded yesterday up uiuil I left it, so that I had no chance to 
write the letter you requested. This morning, however, I liave written the enclosed to Eckcrson, 
who I know, instead of to Ainsworth, who I do not know. It would really look like taking sides in 
politics to write to a stranger on such a subject That I want to avoid, and would like at the same 
time to help Nesmith if what I can say will do it. 

I hope sincerely that he will be returned to the U. S. Senate for another six years, because he has 
been :i good friend to the country without running wild after matters that can neither benefit it nor 
those intended to be benefited. 

If the letter which I have written does not answer, send it back with sugsestions. 

Yours, &c., U. S. Grant. 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 65 

reported for duty with his regiment. From Camp Salu- 
brity, Lieutenant Grant wrote to Mrs. G. B. Bailey, a friend, 
who resided at Georgetown, Ohio, the following letter: 

Camp Salubrity, near Natchitoches, \.t^., June ()th, 1844. 

Mrs. Bailey : — My journey, fortunately, is at an end, and agreeably to 
your request and my own pleasure I hasten to notify you of my safe ar- 
rival here. It always affords me pleasure to write to old acquaintances, 
and much more to hear from them ; so I would be pleased if the cor- 
respondence would not stop here. As long as my letters are answered, if 
agreeable to you, I will continue to write. 

My trip to this place, *' forty days' journey in the wilderness," was 
marked with no incident, save one, worth relating, and that one is 
laughable, curious, hiiportant, surprising, etc., etc., but I can't tell it r.jw. 
It is, for the present, a secret, but I will tell it to you some time. Y^u 
must not guess what it is, for you will go wrong. On my route I called 
around by the way of St. Louis and Jefferson Barracks, where I spent four 
or five days very pleasantly among newly-made acquaintances. From St. 
Louis to New Orleans I had a very jileasant tiip on a large and splendid 
boat, with pleasant passengers, and not much crowded. As we ap- 
proached the South the sun became sensibly warmer and the mosquitoes 
decidedly more numerous. By the time we got to New Orleans my 
hands and face bore the strongest evidence of the number and size of this 
insect in a Southern climate. I was but one day in New Orleans, which 
was spent in running over the city just fast enough to tire myself out and 
get but little good of my visit. But from what I saw I think it would be 
a pleasant place to live, and it is now contemplated that my regiment will 
go in that neighborhood in case Texas should not be annexed to the 
United States; but in case of the annexation, we will probably have to 
go much farther west than we are now; probably to the Rio Colorado. 
From New Orleans to Natchitoches I had the bad fortune to travel on 
a small boat, considerably crowded, through a hot country, with gam- 
bling going on day and night. Some of the passengers had very cut- 
throat a})pearances. From Natchitoches I had to walk (or pay an ex- 
travagant price for a conveyance) three miles through the hottest sun I 
think I ever felt. I found my regiment camping out in small linen tents 
on the top of a high sandy ridge and in the midst of a pine forest. The 
great elevation of our situation, and the fact that one of the best springs 
of water in the State puts out here, are the only recommendations the 
place has. We are about three miles from anyplace; there is no con- 
veyance to take us from one place to anotiier, and everything is so high 
that we can't afford to kee]) a horse or other conveyance of our own^ I 
could walk myself but for the intensity of the heat. As for lodgings, I 
have a small tent that the rain runs through as it would through a sieve. 
For a bedstead I have four short pine sticks set upright, and plank run- 
ning from the two at one end to the other. For chairs I use my trunk 
and bed, and as to a floor we have no such luxury,, yet our meals are 



66 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

cooked in the woods by servants that know no more about culinary mat- 
ters than I do myself. But with all these disadvantages, ray appetite is 
becoming extravagant. I would like to have our old West Point board 
again that you may have heard so much about. As for the troublesome 
insects of creation, they abound here. The swamps are full of alligators, 
and the woods full of bedbugs and ticks, insects that you are not troubled 
with in Ohio, but are the plague of this country. They crawl entirely 
under the skin when they get on a person, and it is impossible to keep 
them off. So much for Cam]3 Salubrity. 

I should be happy to get an answer from this as early as possible, and, 
if nothing more, a postscript from the young ladies. Ladies are always 
so much better at giving the news than others, and then there is nothing 
done or said about Georgetown that I would not like to hear. They 
could tell me of all the weddings, etc.. etc., that are talked of. Give my 
love to everybody in Georgetown. 

Lieutenant U. S. Grant, 

Fourth Infantry. 
To Mrs. G. B. Bailey, Georgctow7t, Ohio. 

P. S. — I give my title in signing this, not because I wish people to 
know what it is, but because I want to get an answer to this, and put it 
there that a letter may be directed so as to get to me. U. S. G, 

At the time Grant entered the army, the United States 
were at peace with all the world, and very few vacancies 
then occurred in the rolls of army officers. He was, there- 
fore, attached as a supernumerary lieutenant to the Fourth 
regiment of Regular United States Infantry, then stationed 
on the frontier, and engaged in keeping down the Indian 
tribes, that at that time were very annoying and danger- 
ous to the early settlers of Missouri Territory, which, 
forty years ago, was almost a wilderness, except on the 
immediate banks of the great rivers. 

While in this part of the West, Brevet Second-Lieutenant 
Grant assisted his military companions in superintending 
the opening up of the country, as well as In maintaining 
the peace and safety of those who had settled and were 
settlincr in that recrion. 

The young officer had not been many months in the 
West before he was ordered, with his regiment, Into Texas, 
to join the army of General Taylor, who had been ap- 
pointed to the command of the United States troops then 
concentrating in that republic. This army occupation was 
made during the year 1845. The Mexicans and Ameri- 



THE MEXICAN WAR.' 67 

cans had for some time held an Imaginary Hne of boundary 
within what Is now known as the State of Texas. As all 
imaginary lines become more or less subjects of dispute, it 
was quite natural that two armies of distinct races, and with 
great personal animosities daily arising, should at last find, 
or imagine they had found, the other overstepping its 
proper limits, and, as a natural sequel, quarrels would take 
place, supposed wrongs would have to be revenged, and 
bloodshed would be the ultimate result. Such was cer- 
tainly the origin of the actual hostilities which ripened Into 
the American war with Mexico. 

Corpus Christi, an important port on the Texan shore, 
was soon taken possession of by the Americans as a base 
of operations, and Grant was stationed at this place when 
he received his commission as full second-lieutenant of 
infantry. This commission was dated from the 30th day 
of September, 1845, ^^d was made out for a vacancy in the 
Seventh regiment of United States Regular Infantry. He 
had, however, become so attached to the members of the 
Fourth regiment, that a request was sent to Washington 
to allow him to be retained with that force, and In the fol- 
lowing November a commission was handed to him, 
appointing him a full second-lieutenant In the Fourth regi- 
ment of United States Regular Infantry. 

Some time before the declaration by Congress of a war 
with Mexico, the struggle commenced in Texas. The 
primary cause of the actual commencement of hostilities 
was a trifle ; but the spark was no sooner applied than the 
conflagration began to make its rapid way, drawing the 
whole within Its fearful grasp. Several petty struggles 
ensued, until at last General Taylor learned that an im- 
mense force of Mexicans were marching with the intention 
of crossing the Rio Grande into Texas, to drive the Ameri- 
cans from that region of territory. Prompdy General Tay- 
lor moved ; but, in the meantime. Fort Brown, on the Texas 
shore of the Rio Grande, was besieged. The gallant 
American garrison defended the position with great 
bravery ; but, unless relief could have been sent them, it 
must have fallen. To relieve the besieo^ed was General 



CS LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Taylor's duty ; and, under his command, Lieutenant Grant 
marched to his first battle-ground. 

On the 8th day of May, 1846, Grant participated In the 
battle of Palo Alto, and, although not mentioned in the 
official reports, he Is spoken of by his companions to have 
acted with gallantry ; several officers of his regiment 
obtaining brevets for their gallant and meritorious con- 
duct. With his characteristic modesty, the young lieuten- 




RESACA DE LA PALMA. LIEUTENANT GRANT WAS RECOGNIZED AS BEING 
FOREMOST IN THE BATTLE. 

ant kept himself In the back-ground, while his seniors 
gained the reward. 

The batde of Resaca de la Palma was fought the next 
day, and here again Lieutenant Grant acted with praise- 
worthy gallantry. As before, his seniors In the regiment 
gained the brevets, while he quiedy remained behind, per- 
fecdy sadsfied that he had done his duty, and that dme 
w^ould ultimately bring to him his recompense. 

Fort Brown was relieved, and the Mexicans felt the 
weight of its metal as they, in disorder, rushed across the 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 69 

Rio Grande in full retreat from the battle so bravely 
foug^ht and won by General Taylor, on May 9th, 1846. 

The American army then advanced to and up the Rio 
Grande, and Texas was relieved from the jurisdiction of 
the Mexicans, Lieutenant Grant also participated in the 
subs(;quent brilliant operations of General Taylor along 
the banks of that historic stream, and advanced into the 
Mexican territory, at a point over a hundred miles above 
the mouth of the river, in the Republic of New Leon. 

On the 23d of September, 1846, Lieutenant Grant took 
part in the splendid operation of General Taylor against 
Monterey, which place the Mexicans had strongly fortified. 
In these works were posted a far superior force of Mexi- 
cans ; but General Taylor was determined to drive them 
out of their intrenchments, and succeeded. 

The American campaign in Mexico was now about to 
assume a different phase of character. War had been 
regularly declared, and a systematized plan of attack was 
made out. The advance by the northern route was to be 
made secondary to the grand movement by way of Vera 
Cruz ; and the army and navy, as in the present war, were 
both to be brought into active use. 

'Tn every batde of General Scott's, from Vera Cruz to 
Mexico; in every batde of General Taylor's, from Palo 
Alto to Monterey," — is Grant's creditable record in the 
Mexican war. He fleshed the sword, which the govern- 
ment had taught him to wield, Vv^hen Ringgold's battery first 
struck the staggering line of Mexicans in that prairie- 
thicket which gives to the earliest action in the war its 
name. When, the next day, the stricken but undemoral- 
ized enemy rallied with reinforcements on a stronger posi- 
tion, and it became apparent, as die sun was declining, that 
cannon could not, as on die previous day, decide the con- 
test, he deployed as a skirmisher, with his regimental com- 
rades, towards the natural ditch in which the foe was 
intrenched ; and was on the lead when the gallant Fourth 
leaped into the ravine of palms, and cleared it of every 
hosdle bayonet. When the Mexicans rallied again, Grant 
charged with that unwavering line of steel, which finally 



70 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

broke them into fracrments, and scattered them on the 
river. He crossed the Rio Grande, and occupied Mata- 
moras with General Taylor's column, while the haggard 
and sullen remnant of the hostile army w^as creeping 
slowly southward. 

Before the end of August Taylor started for Monterey 
with six thousand effectives, half of whom were volunteers. 
Transportation was scarce, and many officers bought pack- 
mules for their personal comforts. On the march the sol- 
diers attended fandangoes almost every night ; for the 
Mexicans, though ready enough to fight on the field, were 
equally ready to dance with the invaders of their country. 

Monterey, with seventeen thousand people, is the most 
important city of northern Mexico. It is built of limestone, 
the streets paved and clean, and fringed w^ith beautiful 
gardens, orchards, and vineyards. The town is two or 
three miles long, and its natural position very strong. 
When our army approached it was well fortified, and held 
by ten thousand Mexican troops. 

After ten days of reconnoitring, Taylor attacked it on 
the 2 1 St of September. Grant's regiment was in Garland's 
brigade of reo^ulars, on the extreme left of our line. The 
troops assaulted the city vigorously, and were vigorously 
opposed from forts, intrenched streets, and barricaded 
houses. One detachment reached the roof of a house near 
a Mexican redoubt, but was driven out. Two companies 
of the Fourth advanced to storm a fortification, and had a 
severe fio^ht, in which Grant's friends and messmates, 
Hoskins and Wood, both fell mortally wounded while 
cheerinor on their men. More than one-third of the com- 
mand was disabled, and it was finally driven back. An- 
other party of the Fourth had a lively fight in the streets — 
loading behind buildings, stepping out to fire, and then 
hiding again. Once they lay upon the ground under a 
hot fire for half an hour, watching the shells which flew 
over them from Worth's command on the other side of the 
town. Before night they had lost very heavily. 

It was said that during this fight the daughter of a 
former Mexican governor, her whole soul aroused at the 



THE MEXICAN WAR. fl 

invasion of her native soil, led a company of lancers in 
three successful charges. After the battle, the native Joan 
of Arc retired from and the town, and was seen no more. 

During the day, a private of the Third infantry, mortally 
wounded, said to a passing sergeant: 

" I am dying. I wish you would take this musket back 
to my captain. I have had it ever since I enlisted, and J 
want to leave it to the old regiment!' 

Another, struck in the thigh by a bullet, exclaimed : "I 
have got my ticket," and limped gayly off to camp on his 
uninjured leg. In similar phrase, during the rebellion, 
would our soldiers sometimes say of a dead comrade, " He 
has handed in his checks." 

In the rear. Worth's division had carried several im- 
portant points, but the attack in front was a failure. Our 
forces were driven back, but held one important redoubt 
which they had gained. The Fourth remained to guard 
this, the men lying in the mud and rain through the cold 
night, though they had eaten nothing for twenty-four 
hours. 

Just at dawn, the next morning, Worth's men stormed 
and captured, at the point of the bayonet, a height com- 
manding the Citadel and the Bishop's Palace, and thus got 
the key of the city. The Mexican general then concen- 
trated his troops In the streets, which so changed positions 
that there was little fighting during the day. The shat- 
tered Fourth was relieved by volunteers, and sent back to 
camp. 

On the third and last day there was hard fighting from 
morning until night. Hand to hand and face to face, the 
Mexicans defended their homes with great obstinacy, from 
house-tops and narrow streets and around the grand plaza. 
Our artillerists sent grape and canister plowing through 
the town, and. In return, musket-balls rattled about them 
like hickory-nuts. As Taylor was standing recklessly in a 
very hot place, a lieutenant begged him not to expose him- 
self so much. His only reply was : 

"Take this axe, and knock down that door." 

Everywhere our men were breaking into buildings, 



72 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

while terrified women and children fell on their knees and 
beoo-ed for mercy. But the troops were well disciplined, 
and behaved admirably, while digging their way persist- 
ently from house to house. 

Toward night, as very hard fighting was going on near 
the plaza, it was suddenly discovered that the detachment 
engaged was almost out of ammunition. The men were 
under a hot fire, and could not hold their ground for a 
moment without cartridges. Taylor's head-quarters were 
a mile back, outside of the town, at "Fort Number One," 
a captured redoubt. Grant, who had been with his regi- 
ment from the firing of the first musket, volunteered to go 
and find him or Twiggs, and order up ammunidon. 

He prepared for his ride behind a house, and then 
dashed out. The moment he emerged from cover he was 
under a sweeping artillery and musketry fire from forts 
and houses. But he was probably the best horseman in 
the army, and his skill did him good service. Before run- 
ning the hot gaundet, he had adopted the posture of the 
Comanche Indians in similar peril — lying against the side 
of his horse, with one foot thrown over the saddle and his 
hand clutched in the mane. Being on the opposite side 
from the enemy, any shots to harm him must first pass 
through the steed. 

His horse was well trained, and with Grant clinging to 
him in that awkward position, and ''bobbing" up and down 
with his motion, he started at a quick run. On the way 
he had to jump an earth wall nearly four feet high. He 
made the leap splendidly, and though balls whistled and 
shells exploded all around him, Grant had the good fortune 
to reach the fort safely. He found Twiggs, who gave the 
order to forward the ammunition, but before it could start 
our troops came pouring back With great, but fruidess, 
gallantry diey had got into a place in which they could not 
stay. As Grant himself afterward described it, they were 
like the man who caught a wild boar. When friends came 
up with congratulations, he replied : 

"Yes, i did pretty well in catching him, but now I wish 
somebody would come and help me let him go ! " 




(73) 



74 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

That nieht ended die fiorhtincr. The Fourdi had lost five 
officers and many men. Grant's duties as quartermaster 
of course excused him from joiner into battle, but he was 
not the man to avail himself of any such privilege. His 
gallantry and skill in riding for the ammunition were the 
theme of general admiration throughout the army. 

Adjutant Hoskins being killed, Grant was now made 
adjutant of the Fourth, and afterward performed the duties 
of that position in addition to those of quartermaster. 

" Onward ! " is the word ; and, with his eye on the cloud- 
capped and towering line of Sierra Madre, he joins the 
wearisome march to the stronghold of Northern Mexico. 
On the 20th of August, 1846, Grant finds himself on that 
abrupt eminence which commands a prospect of Monterey 
from the east. At his feet lies a cultivated valley, tessel- 
lated with the varied orreen and veilow of oranore and 
acacia groves, and waving fields of corn and sugar-cane, 
which stretch up to the very bastlpns of the easternmost 
works of defence. Beyond the forts, the sunbeams glance 
on the marble-like stucco of the cathedral and dwellings of 
the city, which seems to be veiled even from the profane 
gaze of the northern barbarians by the luxuriant loliage of 
flowering tropical trees. 

Behind all, rise heavenward the Saddle and Mitre moun- 
tains, with their tremendous peaks, apth' compared to 
"giants guarding the lovely bower at their feet, and pre- 
pared, to roll enormous rocks from their summits upon the 
adventurous assailants." 

Fort Teneria was right In front of the advancing army. 
The morning of the 21st breaks clear and resplendent; 
and Major Mansfield, who is In the front, reconnoitring, 
sends back word that he has discovered a point wliere that 
foremost fort Is assailable. Colonel Garland, with two Infan- 
try regiments, Bragg's battery, and the Baltimore battalion, is 
descending the slope. Before they had reached the point 
designated by Mansfield, the citadel enfilades them with Its 
fire, and a masked battery In front showers them with shot 
and shell. Fort Teneria Is still silent, but frowns like grim 
death. Meanwhile the Fourth infantry, to which Grant 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 75 

was attached, had been ordered to march by the left flank 
towards the point of attack ; but, ignorant of the fate of 
their comrades, they moved directly against the fort, when 
a destructive fire sweeps from the earth two-thirds of their 
number, and scatters the survivors in dismay. Fortunately 
for the success of the day, two companies of Colonel Gar- 
land's discomfited storming-party find shelter on the roof of a 
tannery, within musket-range of Teneria, and, with the sure 
aim of the rested rifle, pick off, one by one, the Mexican 
gunners. Under the cover of repeated volleys, the Tennes- 
see and the Mississippi volunteers rush across an interven- 
ing space of a hundred yards, and storm up the slope, over 
the parapet,. and through the embrasure. The work at the 
east end is over for the day, and the Fourth infantry 
bivouac in Teneria for the night. This was Grant's first 
encounter with war " in all its terrors clad." 

Grant discovers in the morning that Fort Diablo has 
been evacuated during the night, and is now occupied by 
the Mississippi Volunteers; and the cheering news reaches 
him at breakfast that General Worth has carried every forti- 
fied position on the western acclivities. The guns of the 
Bishop's Palace are now turned upon the town from the 
west, and those of Teneria and Diablo from the east; and, 
simultaneously from each of these directions, the riflemen 
are penetrating the suburbs, and gradually approaching 
each other and the central plaza. The assailants find every 
street barricaded with mason-work, every wall pierced for 
musketry, and on every second roof a sand-bag battery. 
Crawling from roof to roof, burrowing from house to house, 
literally tunnelling covered ways through the solid walls of 
the dwelling, the sharp-shooters, from "opposite directions, 
have arrived within four blocks of each other ; and between 
the two, huddled around the cathedral, is the Mexican 
garrison. The cathedral is their powder-magazine; and it 
is no addition to their serenity of mind that Major Monroe 
is dropping into it explosive shells from a mortar battery 
on Federation Hill. The final onslaught on the besieged 
at bay is arrested by a bugle, with a flag of truce ; and, on 
the 24th of September, Ampudia capitulates. 



^5 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Speedily there comes from General Scott a requisition for 
Worth's and Twiggs's division to join him in the grand 
advance upon the aty of Mexico. Grant's regiment Is in- 
cluded In this demand. He parted from his disheartened 
companions when they were struggling on towards Buena 
Vista, there to win Imperishable laurels. 

To Grant it was a half-year of enchantment. War as- 
sumed her most comely guise, and wove round the en- 




GENERAL WINFIELD SCOTT. 



tranced young warrior all her fascinating spells. It is im- 
possible to describe the exhilaration with which he^ partici- 
pated In that series of hard-fought engagements which bore 
triumphandy the flag of the young republic from the shores 
of the gulf to the lake-encircled metropolis of the ancient 
Aztecs,^in the footprints of previous conquerors, whose 
names recalled the palmiest days of the proudest monar- 
chy ; through scenery grand and picturesque beyond all 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 



11 

example ; along the base of volcanoes once crowned with 
fire, now lifting eternal snow far into the azure depths of 
air; amid the ruins of temples which once smoked with 
human sacrifice ; and along the majestic front of colossal 
pyramids, which carry the mind back to a primeval race 
and an extinct civilization. Nor was it any drawback to 
his enjoyment, that, with every step of this excidng cam- 
paign, he was advancing in military knowledge and capacity, 
and also in professional reputadon and rank. He was 
favoral)ly noticed for his skill in gunnery, when that cordon 




LIEUTENANT GRANT IS COMPLIMENTED FOR HIS GALLANTRY. 

of earthworks was tightening round Vera Cruz the ** Invin- 
cible." He was complimented for his gallantry at Churu- 
busco, when the tete de pont was carried by the bayonet 
alone 

At the batde of Molino del Rey his conduct was so dis- 
tinguished that he was appointed a brevet first-lieutenant 
to date from the day of the batde, but the honor was de- 
clined, only however to be increased in its importance by a 
commission being made out as full first-lieutenant. At 
Chapultepec, and in fact in every engagement which took 



^8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

place during the remainder of the campaign, he equally 
distinguished himself. 

Captain Horace Brooks, of the Second artillery, In his 
report of the batde of Chapultepec, says : 

" I succeeded in reaching the fort with a few men. Here 
Lieutenant U. S. Grant, and a few more men of the Fourth 
infantry, found me, and, by a joint movement, after an ob- 
stinate resistance, a strong field-work was carried, and the 
enemy's right was completely turned." 




STORMING OF CHAPULTEPEC, IN WHICH LIEUT. GRANT DID NOBLE SERVICE. 

The report of Major Francis Lee, commanding the Fourth 
infantry, at the same battle, says : 

*'At the first barrier the enemy was in strong force, which 
rendered It necessary to advance with caution. This was 
done, and when the head of the battalion was within short 
musket range of the barrier, Lieutenant Grant, Fourth in- 
fantry, and Captain Brooks, Second artillery, with a few 
men of their respective regiments, by a handsome move- 
ment to the left, turned the right flank of the enemy, and 
the barrier was carried. 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 79 

Brevet-Colonel John Garland, commanding die First 
brigade, In his report of the battle of Chapiiltepec, says: 

"The rear of the enemy had made a stand behind a 
breast-work, from which they were driven by detachments 
of the Second artillery, under Captain Brooks, and the 
Fourth infantry, under Lieutenant Grant, supported by 
other regiments of the division, after a short but sharp 
conflict. I recognized the command as it came up, mounted 
a howitzer on the top of a convent, which, under the direc- 
tion of Lieutenant Grant, Quartermaster of the Fourth 
infantry, and Lieutenant Ledrum, Third artillery, annoyed 
the enemy considerably. I must not omit to call attention 
to Lieutenant Grant, Fourth infantry, who acquitted him- 
self most nobly upon several occasions under my own 
observation." 

This particular mention was made the more complimen- 
tary by the fact that, exclusive of the officers of his own 
staff. Colonel Garland names but one other officer besides 
Lieutenant Grant out of his whole brigade. 

General Worth's report, September i6th, 1847, ^^^o 
speaks highly of Lieutenant Grant. 

His bravery was not without its reward, and he subse- 
quently received the brevet of captain, the appointment to 
elate from September 13th, 1847, the day on which the bat- 
tle was foucrht. 

Amoncr other e^llant officers who were connected with the 
Fourth regiment at the time of which we write, were Gen- 
eral George Archibald McCall, the late commander of the 
Pennsylvania Reserve corps, Brigadier-General Benjamin 
Alvord, Major-General C. C. Augur, Brigadier-General H. 
M. Judah, the late Brigadier-General Alexander Hays, and 
Brigadier-General David A. Russell. 

Scott's campaign in Mexico was to Grant a second mili- 
tary school, which rounded off and completed the education 
he had acquired at first. It was a practical illustration, 
upon a grand scale and with sublime accompaniments, of 
the principles of military art with which he had already 
been imbued. Engineering, which he had studied at West 
Point, teaches, among other things, the modes in which 



80 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

walled cities are approached and captured. On the 9th 
of March, 1847, Grant found himself before one of the two 
walled cities in North America. Vera Cruz is surrounded 
by a line of solidly built bastions and redans, with curtains 
between, and terminating at one extremity with Fort San 
lago, and at the other with Fort Conception. The harbor 
is commanded by the famous fortification of San Juan 
d'Ulloa, Impregnable to assault, but which yielded once to 
a bombardment after a resistance which was merely con- 
temptible. The siege of Vera Cruz, though of short dura- 
tion, Illustrated many of the most important practical 
principles of engineering. The first parallel was drawn at 
a distance of eleven hundred yards, from which a battery 
of three thirty-two pounders, and as m.any Paixhans, finally 
succeeded in demolishing the curtain, and shattering the 
redans and bastions, and destroying half the houses on the 
land side. The bombs of the mortar batteries destroyed 
all the combustible houses. The flag of truce appeared on 
the third day ; and negotiations were opened, which ter- 
minated in the surrender of Vera Cruz and San Juan 
d'Ulloa. This was the first sleo^e in w^hich Grant was en- 
gaged. 

Where the national road crosses the Rio del Plan, you 
instantly rise from the tierra caliente into a more elevated 
region, and, after an hour's march, the entrance of one of 
the defiles. Here, on the left, rises a ridge, extending the 
whole length of the pass ; and behind it rolls the rapid but 
shallow river through a canon a hundred feet in depth. 
Upon its acclivities, facing the road and in advantageous 
positions, the Mexicans have planted their heavy batteries, 
one above the other ; and the superior commanding all the 
approaches to the inferior. Here, on your right, are elon- 
gated mountain spurs, basing upon the road their slopes, 
covered with impenetrable chaparral. They forbid any 
diversion to the rlo-ht. Still farther west stand two conical 
mounts, — Atalaya, masked from the road by one of the 
spurs; and Cerro Gordo, lifting itself eight hundred feet 
above the plain, and presenting to you an eastern face, 
rugged, difficult of access, and strengthened by two tiers of 




r^ 




jMBARDMENT of vera CRUZ— GRANT'S FIRST SIEGE EXPERIENCE. 
6 («I) 



82 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



breastworks and abatis. Its summit is crowned by a tower, 
mounting nine guns, which sweeps the defile and the road 
beyond it. As if this were not enough to guard the pass 
at the foot of Cerro Gordo, a battery of six guns is planted 
directly on the road. 

Grant sees in an instant that here is no merely engineer- 
ing question. It needs but a glance at his left to show him 
that no skill and courage can turn the enemy's right. To 
the left of his line alone a flanking movement can be aimed: 
and here on his right are these spurs; and the resources 




BATTLE OF CERRO GORDO. 



of reconnoissance have been tasked in vain to find a padi- 
way through them. 

When Scott reaches the ground, his experienced eye 
speedily detects the sole expedient which can remove this 
great obstruction from his path. ''Let Pillow's brigade 
seriously threaten, and if practicable carry, these batteries 
of the enemy on the left of the road. Let Twiggs' division 
before it reaches the defile, wheel sharp to the right into 
this forest of chapparal, and cutting a pathway behind those 
elongated ridges, and encircling all the Mexican works, 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 83 

debouch beyond them all into the national road. Assail 
Cerro Gordo, the key of the whole position, in the rear ; 
and at the same time cut off the retreat of the enemy to 
Jalapa." This was Scott's preliminary order of battle, 
omitting only his directions to the artillery and cavalry re- 
serve, to Worth — -to follow and support the operations of 
Twig-gs, and the directions for the vigorous pursuit of the 
foe after his intrenchments were carried. 

The performance corresponds with the programme, 
except that Twiggs, being annoyed by a party of skirmish- 
ers in executing his movement, throws off to his left a 
detachment to scatter them, which unexpectedly carries the 
cone-shaped Atalaya, and encouraged thereby, scales Cerro 
Gordo in front, and turns to flight one division of Santa 
Anna's Mexican army before Twiggs' left, on the march, 
has reached the Jalapa road to intercept it. Such was 
Grant's first participation in a flanking movement. There 
is another man in this army who will one day recall it. 
Robert E. Lee is serving on Scott's staff as captain of 
enofineers. 

" The plan of attack," says Scott in his report, '' was finely 
executed by this gallant army before two o'clock p. m. 
yesterday. About 3,000 men laid down their arms, with 
the usual proportion of field and company officers, besides 
five generals, several of them of great distinction — Pinson, 
Jarrero, La Vega, Noriega, and Obando. A sixth general, 
Vasquez, was killed in defending the battery tower in the 
rear of the line of defence, the capture of which gave us 
those glorious results." 

Worth's division of 4,000 men, to which Grant's regiment 
was attached, is immediately pushed on to the fortress of 
Perote, which was captured without a struggle ; and from 
thence they quietly march upon Puebla, and stack their 
arms in the Grand Plaza of a city of 80,000 inhabitants. 
Here, at an elevation of 7,000 feet above the sea, which 
tempers the climate to a perpetual summer, in the centre 
of a valley of unrivalled fertility and beauty, which annually 
produces two abundant crops, Grant passes the months of 
July and August in the year 1847. 



84 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

On the 7th of August the order is given to advance, and 
the troops, overloaded with their arms and knapsacks, 
begin to climb the Cordilleras. Ten thousand feet higher 
than the summit on which they stand, "the hill which 
smokes" seems near enough to be touched by hand. 
" Stretching far away at their feet were seen noble forests 
of oak, sycamore, and cedar ; and beyond, yellow fields of 
maize, and the towering maguey, intermingled with orchards 
and blooming gardens. In the centre of the great basin 
were beheld the lakes, occupying then a much larger por- 
tion of its surface than at present; their borders thickly 
studded with towns and hamlets, and in their midst — like 
some Indian empress with her coronal of pearls — the fair 
city of Mexico, with her wdiite towers and pyramidal tem- 
ples, reposing, as it were, on the bosom of waters, the far- 
famed 'Venice of the Aztecs.' High over all rose the 
royal hill of Chapultepec, the residence of the Mexican 
monarchs, crowned with the same grove of gigantic cy- 
presses which at this day fling their broad shadows over 
the land. In the distance, beyond the blue waters of the 
lake, and nearly screened by intervening foliage, was seen 
a shining speck, the rival capital Tezcuco ; and sdll farther 
on, the dark belt of porphyry, girding the valley around 
like a rich setting which Nature has devised for the fairest 
of her jewels." 

Descending from this loftiest point of roadway between 
the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, Grant encamped with the 
rest of the army at Chalco in the valley of Mexico, and 
advanced the next day to San Augustin, where, on the iSth 
of September, 1847, Scott concentrated all his troops, and 
established his hospitals, depots, baggage and siege trains. 
All the garrisons, except a small one at Peubla, had been 
drawn in; all communication with Vera Cruz and home 
abandoned. 

When the resolution is adopted to advance by the south- 
ern route, the entrance to the San Antonio causeway is 
immediately occupied by Worth's division. It consists of 
two brigades. The Fourth infantry, the Second and Third 
ardllery, with Duncan's field-battery, constitute the first, or 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 85 

Colonel Garland's brigade. The Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth 
regiments of infantry, with a light battery, constitute the 
second, or Colonel Clarke's brigade. 

The general of division under whom it was Grant's good 
fortune to serve was Scott's right arm during the campaign: 
wherever hard work was to be done, or perils encountered, 
or glory won, Worth was in the van. Garland and Clarke 
were the right and left arms of Worth. Of Colonel Gar- 
land, Worth himself says, that "he was conspicuous on 
many fields of the Mexican war ; and by his skill, conduct, 
and courage in the last great combats, greatly added to an 
already established reputation for patriotism and soldier- 
ship." 

On the 20th day of September Grant was standing with 
his brigade comrades in an ancrle of the San Antonio cause- 
way. They propose by this route to make an excursion to 
the city of Mexico, and enter it by the San Antonio gate. 
They possess some exciting information, which it is desir- 
able that the reader shall also learn in order to enter into 
the spirit of their adventure. They know that some oppo- 
sition is to be anticipated to their jaunt. They can see, 
that, half a mile ahead, the villao^ers of San Antonio have 
thrown impediments across the causeway, which may pre- 
maturely arrest their project. They know that some three^ 
miles ahead, where this causeway crosses the Churubusco 
rivulet, still more formal preparations are made for their 
reception ; that a tete de pont has been erected with bastions, 
connecting-curtains, wet ditch, everything in the most ap- 
proved engineering style and finish, even to the four guns 
run directly upon their narrow path ; and that, if the Mexi- 
cans having them in charge are mischievously disposed, 
quite serious consequences may there ensue. They know 
that a breastwork of some 400 yards front connects this 
tete de pont with the convent church of San Pablo in the 
hamlet of Churubusco ; and that, strange to say, a redoubt 
and abatis obstruct the entrance into the sacred edifice, 
which, moreover, mounts seven cannon on its consecrated 
walls, crenelled also for musketry. They know, also, that 
Santa Anna^ with a following of 27,000 soldiers, has come 



S6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

forth from his palace to this interesting locality for the pur- 
pose of greeting them upon their arrival. They know that 
beyond the river and the bridge some 8,000 Mexican re- 
serves are drawn up in line awaiting their advent. They 
know that General Twiggs, with quite a large retinue, went 
through the Pedre^-al, some five miles to the west, for the 
purpose of visiting the fortified camp of General Valencia, 
who, with a concourse of friends, has also emerged from the 
city with hospitable intent. They know that it is the plan 
of General Twiggs' party, after paying their respects to the 
Mexican general, to pursue a circuitous path for the pur- 
pose of avoiding the parade and ceremonies at Churubusco, 
and to join Garland beyond the river in his attack on the 
city. 

Grant, with the brigade, is awaiting the signal which shall 
announce that Clarke has reached his point of destination. 
His guns at length are heard. Garland's men rush im- 
petuously upon the San-Antonio intrenchments, and drive 
out the enemy in a long straggling column, which Clarke, 
now charging from the meadows on its flank, cuts near the 
centre ; hurling the rear upon the village of Dolores as 
unworthy of further notice, but uniting with Garland in 
scourging the severed head to the compatriot embrace of 
Churubusco. But the Sixth infantry, which is on the lead, 
suddenly comes to a halt They discover the Convent of 
San Pablo, with its formidable defences, on the left of the 
causeway, the ^e^e de pont garnished with heavy guns and 
crowded with troops, the continuous line of infantry between 
the two ; and beyond the river, far as the eye can reach, 
stretch away the glittering bayonets of the reserves. A 
tremendous raking volley from the tete de pont, and enfi- 
lading fire from the convent, rendered this exposed highway 
untenable ; and both brigades deploy through the cornfields 
on their right, to strike the bridge-head on the flank. 

Meanwhile, the division of Twiggs, having but six hours 
ago annihilated the army of Valencia at Contreras, has 
pushed on to its promised rendezvous here, and is now 
hammering the convent, and the intrenchments which the 
enemy presents on the right. Shields' and Pierce's brig- 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 



87 

ades have forded the river, and fallen on the enemy's re- 
serves in the marshes beyond It. The battle rages at three 
points at once— on the left, the right, the real". Victory 
wavers, and It Is doubtful upon which banner she will perch. 
Garland's and Clarke's brigades are stunned In their on- 
slaught upon the flank of the tete de pojtt. The Sixth 
infantry stagger back, decimated, from their furious leap 
upon Its front. Duncan's battery is obliged to mask Itself 
before the heavier metal of its guns. ' l^aylor's battery, 
operating with Twiggs upon the right, crippled In men and 
horses, is driven from Its position by the expert gunnery 
of San Pablo ; while the assailing infantry there are'^terribly 
galled by the sharpshooters of Its tower and roof; and 
Shields, on the meadows, is outflanked by the Mexican 
cavalry. 

One daring exploit redeems the fortunes of the day- 
Lieutenant Longstreet, bearing the colors of the Eighth 
infantry, and leading the regiment which he inspirits 
both by exhortation and example, leaps with It Into the dry- 
ditch of the tete de pout, escalades the curtain without lad- 
der or scallng-implement, and, with the cold steel alone, 
clears its bastions of defenders, and drives them over the 
bridge upon their reserve. Quicker than thought, he turns 
Its captured guns upon San Pablo, which Is still slaughter- 
ing the columns of Twiggs upon the right. Lieutenant- 
Colonel Duncan gallops forward with his battery. He 
opens, at a distance of two hundred yards, upon the walls 
around the convent, and drives the artillery-men from the 
guns In that quarter, and the Infantry from their intrench- 
ments; and then turns his battery upon the convent-tower. 
While its garrison are half demoralized by this overwhelm- 
ing attack of Duncan from the left, the stormers upon the 
right capture the nearest salient which confronts them in 
that direction ; the light artillery advance rapidly within 
effective range ; San Pablo slackens fire ; and a dozen white 
flags appear just as Captain Alexander of the Third infan- 
try is entering it, sword in hand. The whole fortified 
position of Churubusco is taken. 

When the tete de pout, which had so long withstood 



gg LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Worth's division, gives way, with resistless power, it sweeps 
across the bridge, over the ditch, overflowing the fugitives 
from the works and the unbroken battahons of the foe 
upon the meadows. Shields, who is sorely beset by the 
reserves, feels their ranks waver before the tide of victory, 
until they are borne away in dismay. Garland, with deafen- 
ing shout; Ayres, with a captured Mexican gun ; Hoffman, 
with a remnant of the gallant Sixth ; Harney, with his dra- 
goons — while goring the retreating Mexicans, intersect the 
now exulting lines of Shields. 

Head-quarters are established at Tacubaya, the army is 
cantoned there and in the neighboring villages ; and then 
ensues for a lortnight that ill-advised armistice and futile 
attempt of Commissioner Trist to conquer a peace from 
Santa Anna in the field of diplomacy. 

It is yet dark on the morning of the 8th of September, 
when Grant, in regimental batde-line, confronts the last 
fortified posidon upon which depends the fate of the enemy's 
capital. Directly in his front rise the solid walls of Molino 
del Rey, five hundred feet in length. On its right the Casa 
Mata, or arsenal, presents a forbidding mass of heavy 
masonry, pierced for musketry, and enveloped by a quad- 
rangular field-work. .Between the two is the station of the 
enemy's field-battery and of the infantry deployed on either 
side for its protection. On its left, wrapped in the solemn 
shade of gigantic cypresses, towers from the summit of a 
porphyridc rock the royal casde of Chapultepec. 

The co-operadng forces for the single movement in 
which Grant is personally concerned are all in position. 
Garland is on the plain, staring direcdy into the eyes of the 
Molino ; and on the Tacubaya ridge, within five hundred 
yards of it, Huger, with his matches lighted ; Wright, with 
his forlorn hope in leash ; Cadwallader and Kirby Smith, 
as reserves against mishaps — all awaidng the opening of 
an exciting drama. Morn has hardly purpled the east, be- 
fore the heavy missiles of Huger's battering train pound 
the walls and penetrate the roof of the Molino ; and 
bugles sound, shouts run, along the line of the enemy's 
defences, as the roused garrison begird themselves for 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 89 

action. At the first indication that the mason-work Is 
yielding Wright, with his half-legion of stormers, advances 
at double-quick down the Tacubaya slope ; and unchecked 
by the ditch which environs the structure, unshaken by the 
sheet of flame which flashes from the light battery, by the 
musketry which showers upon them, by the canister and 
grape which enfilade every approach, in spite of its sup- 
ports, captures the enemy's field-battery between the Casa 
Mata and the Molino. 

Garland now rapidly moves forward with Drum's section 
of artillery, and carries an apparently impregnable position 
under the guns of Chapultepec. The Fourth joins the on- 
slaught of all arms which have closed in upon the Molino, 
firing into its apertures, climbing to its roof, and striving, 
with the butts of muskets and extemporized battering- 
rams, to burst its doors. Major Buchanan of the Fourth, 
with Alden and Grant, are forcing the southern gate. 
Ayres and Anderson vault through an embrasure at the 
northwest angle. A hand-to-hand fight ensues, from room 
to room, from floor to floor, from roof to roof. In the main 
apartment of the building, a stalwart Mexican gathers his 
straggling comrades into a line which threatens to clear the 
Molino of every assailant ; but the southern gate has 
yielded, Buchanan and Grant appear with a file of the 
Fourth infantry, and the Molino is finally captured beyond 
peradventure. It is thus that Grant wins his first brevet. 
Before noon, the Casa Mata is blown up, the Molino dis- 
mantled, and the fatigued survivors of this desperate con- 
test reposing on their laurels at head-quarters. 

The next three days are devoted to a close and daring 
reconnoissance of the southern avenues to the city by the 
staff of Scott. The Mexicans have, accordingly, fortified 
these approaches with superior strength. In a personal 
survey, he saw reason to change his direction ; but, in order 
that the preconceived impression of Santa Anna may re- 
main undisturbed, he leaves Colonel Riley's brigade to 
threaten and manoeuvre here, but hastens himself to or- 
ganize the real advance upon the west and southwest cause- 
ways. 



90 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



The first step in the inverted plan is to carry that isolated 
mound, strongly defended, and all surmounted by the Castle 
of Chapultepec. Heavy batteries, within easy range, are 
established. Pillow's and Quitman's division, reinforced 
by storming parties from Worth and Twiggs, are held under 
cover for assault. Bombardment and cannonade are com- 
menced on the morning of the 12th, and continued until 
nightfall. The signal for assault is given by nine o'clock 



on the 



mornmg 



of the 



13th 



and the two assailing 




LIEUTENANT GRANT'S REGIMENT ENTERING PUEBLA. 



columns move forward with an alacrity which betokens 
success. 

Pillow's approach lies through that open grove of stately 
cypresses, gray with the moss of ages, through a wilderness 
of wild shrub which marks the site of Montezuma's garden, 
until he emerges upon the cleared and levelled area at the 
foot of the rocky acclivity. Quitman's approach is along 
the Tacubaya Road flanked with deep ditches, in the face 
of crosscuts, obstructions, and batteries, defended by an 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 9 1 

army of men. After a succession of desperate struggles, 
which upon any other day would have been gazetted as a 
pitched battle, he enters the outer enclosure of Chapultepec 
in time to co-operate with Pillow in the final assault of the 
west. 

The broken acclivity was still to be ascended, and a strong 
redoubt midway to be carried, before reaching the castle 
on the heights. It yielded to valor, and the shouts that 
followed announced to the castle the fate that impended. 
The enemy were steadily driven from shelter to shelter. 
The retreat allowed not time to fire a single mine, without 
the certainty of the blowing up friend and foe. At length the 
ditch and wall of the main work were reached ; the scalino-- 

o 

ladders were brought up and planted by the storming 
parties. Some of the daring spirits first in the assault were 
cast down, killed or wounded ; but a lodgement was soon 
made ; streams of heroes followed ; all opposition was 
overcome ; and several of our reo^imental colors flune out 
from the upper walls, amidst long-continued shouts and 
cheers, which sent dismay into the capital. No scene could 
have been more animatlncr or olorious. 

While these grand events are transpiring, Worth's divi- 
sion, stripped of its first brigade by Pillow's requisition, is 
awaiting at the Molino its predestined occupation. The 
order at length arrives ; and Garland leads cautiously 
around the northern base of that consecrated hill. Grant 
Is with him, and wins an additional grade on this immortal 
afternoon. When they reach the embankment, they per- 
ceive that It Is no place for organized operations. The 
brigade Is broken Into detachments : a part are thrown out, 
right and left, into the marsh, advancing behind every nat- 
ural obstacle and cover; a part rush stealthily from arch to 
arch. Garland is now approaching the first breastwork. 
Behind it is the enemy in force, with his centre resting upon 
it and his wings expanded. " When the head of the bat- 
talion was In short musket-range of this barrier," writes 
Major Lee, commander of the Fourth, "Lieutenant Grant 
and Captain Brooks, with a few men of their respective 
regiments, by a handsome movement to the left, turned the 



92 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

right of the enemy, and the barrier was carried." The 
soldiers display their habitual firmness and audacity. Worth 
directs the movement with tactical exactness — massing his 
scattered detachments upon the enemy in front, while care- 
fully guarding his own flank ; throwing off artillery and 
infantry into the marsh upon the left to turn an abatis, into 
the marsh upon the right to clear his own and Quitman's 
front, who is pursuing a divergent march to the capital. 
Worth pushes his troops through a withering fire. They 
capture a second battery; they silence and dismande a third, 
which enfilades their path. They have reached Campo 
Santo, where the causeway wheels into the inhabited streets 
of the city. 

"We here came in front of another battery," writes Gen- 
eral Worth in his report, " beyond which was the last de- 
fence, or \\\^garita of San Cosme. The approach to these 
two defences was in a right line ; and the whole space was 
literally swept by grape, canister, and shells, from a heavy 
gun and howitzer ; added to which, severe fires of musketry 
were delivered from the tops of the adjacent houses and 
churches. Garland's brigade was thrown to the right, 
within and masked by the aqueduct, and instructed to dis- 
lodge the enemy from the buildings in his front, and 
endeavor to reach and turn the left of \\\^ garita. Clarke's 
brigade was ordered to take the buildings on the left of the 
road, and carry the right of the garita. A mountain-how- 
itzer was placed on the top of a commanding building on 
the left, and another on the Church of San Cosme on the 
right ; both of which opened with great effect. The work of 
the troops was tedious, and necessarily slow, but was favored 
by the fire of the howitzers. I recognized the command as 
it came up," writes Colonel Garland in his report of the 
action, " mounted a howitzer on the top of a convent, which, 
under the direction of Lieutenant Grant, quartermaster of 
the Fourth infantry, and Lieutenant Lendrum, Third artil- 
lery, annoyed the enemy considerably. I must not omit to 
call attendon to Lieutenant Grant, who acquitted himself 
most nobly upon several occasions under my observation." 

While Grant is showering the roofs with his howitzer. 




LIEUT. GRANT ACCOMPANYING GENERAL SCOTT WHILE ENTERING 
THE CITY OF MEXICO. 

(93) 



94 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Garland is bush-fightlng on one side of the street, and 
Clarke burrowing on the other. General Quitman was 
preparing to storm the citadel, when the city council, at four 
o'clock in the morning, waited upon the commanding gen- 
eral with a proposition which resulted in the capitulation of 
Mexico upon terms imposed by General Scott. After dis- 
missing the deputation, he communicated orders both to 
Quitman and to Worth to feel their way cautiously toward 
the centre of the city, and to occupy respectively the Grand 
Plaza and the Alameda. Worth occupies the beautiful 
park assigned to him, withi:: three blocks of the national 
palace ; there to encounter the assassin-like fire of the con- 
victs, which the fugitive government had released from the 
prisons, and distributed into every advantageous position 
for the massacre of the United States troops, be it church, 
convent, or even hospital. Heroic Garland is struck down, 
wounded by the first fire. 

Grant w^as a spectator of that splendid pageant on the 
14th of September, the culminating felicity of Scott's long 
military career — his ceremonious entrance, with all the 
honors, into the city of Mexico. 

After the assault and capture of the city of Mexico, in 
which his bravery was again conspicuous. Grant for a while 
became absorbed in the duties of regimental quartermaster. 
His station being in the city, he made the acquaintance of 
many of the officers of the United States army ; and after 
the declaration of peace organized several excursions into 
the neighboring country for the purjDOse of gathering infor- 
mation. He lost no opportunity to become acquainted with 
the Mexican people and their institutions. He was at this 
time only twenty-five years old, had served two years in 
camp and garrison under the best officers of the army, had 
accompanied Taylor in his brilliant campaign from Corpus 
Christi to Monterey, and finally, in the double capacity of 
staff and company officer, had shared in the labor and honor 
of Scott's memorable conquest. He took part in every 
battle of the war except Buena Vista, and by zeal, energy 
and courage, distinguished himself above most of his com- 
panions holding the same rank. 



I 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 95 

The following were the officers of the Fourth regiment 
of United States regular infantry during the war with 
Mexico : 

Lieutenant-Colonel 

John Garland, who participated in the whole of the Mexican war, and 
commanded a brigade, received a brevet colonelcy from Resaca de la 
Palma, and a brevet as brigadier-general from Churubusco. He was 
severely wounded in the capture of the city of Mexico, was made colonel 
of the Eighth regular infantry regiment in May, 1849, ^^^<^ ^^^^ i^^ t^"*^ 
city of New York June 5th, 1861. 

Major 

Francis Lee, who had entered upon the campaign as captain in the Sev- 
enth regiment United States regular infantry, was brevetted lieutenant- 
colonel from . Churubusco, and colonel from El Molino del Rey. He 
became colonel of the Second regiment of regular infantry October 18th, 
1855, and died at St. Louis, Missouri, January 19th, 1859. 

Captains. 

George W. Allen (who had been brevetted major from Florida) was 
further brevetted lieutenant-colonel from Resaca de la Palma. He was 
next promoted to be a major of the Second regiment regular infantry, 
and died at Vera Cruz on March 15th, 1848. 

John Page was mortally wounded in the first battle, Palo Alto, and 
died on the 12th of July, 1846. 

William M. Graham (who had been brevetted major from Florida) 
continued with the regiment until February, 1847, was promoted major 
of the Second regiment of regular infantry on February i6th, 1847, ^^"^^ 
afterwards to lieutenant-colonel of the Eleventh United States infantry, a 
regiment especially organized for the Mexican war. He was several 
times wounded during the campaign, and v/as finally killed at El Molina 
del Rey on September 8th, 1847. 

Pitcairn Morrison was brevetted major from Resaca de la Palma, be- 
came major of the Eighth regiment of United States infantry on Septem- 
ber 26th, 1847, lieutenant-colonel of the Seventh regular infantry on June 
9th, 1853, and colonel of the Eighth regular infantry June 6th, 1861, with 
which rank he retired from the service during the fall of 1863. 

George A. McCall was brevetted major and lieutenant-colonel from 
Resaca de la Palma, and afterwards appointed to the Adjutant-General's 
Department as inspector-general. He resigned the service on April 29th, 
1853, and came in as a volunteer at the commencement of the rebellion. 

Gouverneur Morris was brevetted major from Resaca de la Palma, pro- 
moted to major of the Third infantry on January 31st, 1850, and lieutenant- 
colonel of the First infantry May 31st, 1857. He was retired from the 
service on September 9th, 1861. 

Robert C. Buchanan was brevetted major from Resaca de la Palma, 



g6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

and lieutenant-colonel from El Molino del Rey. He served through 
the whole of the Mexican war with great credit, and was, in 1848, ap- 
pointed acting inspector-general. He resumed his regimental position, 
and was promoted major of the regiment on February 3d. 1855, and lieu- 
tenant-colonel on the 9th of September, 1861, which rank he held at the 
commencement of 1864, when he was employed as Superintendent of 
Volunteer Recruiting in the State of New Jersey. 

Charles H. Larnard was brevetted major from Resaca de la Palma, and 
was drowned in Puget's Sound, near Fort Madison, Washington Terri- 
tory, on the 27th of March, 1854. 

Benjamin Alvord was brevetted captain from Resaca de la Palma, and 
major from the National Bridge. He became a paymaster, with the rank 
of major, from June 2 2d, 1854, and during the rebellion was appointed a 
brigadier-general of volunteers. 

Henry L. Scott was appointed aide and acting adjutant-general to 
General Scott, gained the brevet of major from Churubusco, and lieu- 
tenant-colonel from Chapultepec. He became special aide to General 
Scott on March 7th, 1855, ^^^^ retired from the service on the 30th of 
October, 1861. 

First-Lieutenants. 

Henry Prince, the adjutant of the regiment, was brevetted captain from 
Churubusco, and was severely wounded at, and brevetted major from. 
El Molino del Rey. He was appointed paymaster May 23d, 1855, and 
brigadier-general of volunteers during the war of the rebellion. 

Charles Hoskins, the former adjutant of the regiment, was killed at 
Monterey September 21st, 1846. 

Richard H. Graham was mortally wounded at Monterey September 21st, 
1846, and died on October 12th, 1846. 

John H. Gore was brevetted captain from Churubusco, and major from 
El Molino del Rey. He died August ist, 1852, in the Bay of Panama, 
New Grenada. 

Richard E. Cochran was killed in the second battle of the war, Resaca 
de la Palma, on May 9th, 1846. 

Theodore H. Porter was killed in a skirmish near the Rio Grande on 
April 19th, 1846. 

Sidney Smith was wounded at El Molino del Rey, and was mortally 
wounded in the attack upon the city of Mexico on September 14th, 1847, 
and died on September i6th, 1847. 

Granville O. Haller served through the whole of the Mexican war, was 
brevetted captain from El Molino del Rey, and major from Chapultepec ; 
became captain in January, 1848, and major of the Seventh infantry 
September 25th, 1861 ; and was summarily dismissed from the service dur- 
ing the summer of 1863. 

Henry D. Wallen was wounded at Palo Alto May 8th, 1846, became 
adjutant from February, 1849, to May, 1850, captain from January 31st, 
1850, and major of the Seventh infantry from November 25th, 1861. He 
held this position at the beginning of 1864. 

Henderson Ridgeley was acting assistant adjutant-general to Brigadier- 



i 



THE MEXICAN WAR. q^ 

N've'nl';;":!;;"' "'' ''''' '' ^'^ ^^^^ '' Guadalaxara on the .4th of 
Jenks Beaman participated in the battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de 
a Palma, commanded his company in the battle of El Molmo d 1 Rev 
and died at Tampico on the 6th of May, 184S. ^' 

Second-Lieutenants. 
Christopher R. Perry, after participating in part of the campaign died 
at sea, on his return home, October 8th 1848 campaign, died 

rebellion he became a major-general of volunteers 
Ulysses S. Grant. 

James SWoods was brevetted first lieutenant from Resaca de la Pilnia 
and was killed at Monterey September 21st 1846 ' 

Alexander Hays was brevetted first lieutenant from Resaca de la Pilm-, 
and became acting assistant adjutant-general to Brigfdier-General ^ane' 
waVoTrreb^^l.r-^^ °" ""''' "''' ''''' ^^^ -'""teerS'duHnSe. 

Ihomas J. Montgomery commanded his company at the blttles of 

Si^gto^ffe^ntrNrr:'^^ ^"^^^ - ^-' S-^'— 

RrSr"^ '^ ^"''^'! """"^ brevetted first lieutenant from the Nitional 
Bridge, and remaining ,n the regular army after the war became a bri^ 
adier-general of volunteers during the war of the rebellion ^" 

teptc'reptemb'er'^3tf "847 "°""'^'' ^"'^ ^''^''"^''^ '^''^'' ^' ^hapul- 

R|:t1s^SglT:^,?e^rr;t!;roS"^"'^^-' ^' ^^°'"-'^^' 

Gate on September 13th, 1S47 ; became first lieutenant during Mav isTs 

^Archibald B. Botts died on the xst ''of Jaifuary, .st;, at Camargo, 

Re?anr.^^'r°""'A', ^l^revetted first lieutenant at El Molino del 
Rey, and captain from Chapultepec; became captain in FebruarvT8« 
andresigned the service on March nth 1856 ' ^emuary, 1855, 



gS LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Of the foregoing-, the follownig only have occupied promi- 
nent positions during the war of the rebelhon : 

Captain George Archibald McCall was appointed the 
commander of the division of troops known as the " Penn- 
sylvania Reserve Corps," which consisted of three brigades 
and fifteen regiments, and fought with the Army of the 
Potomac, with the rank of brigadier-general of volunteers, 
from May 17th, 1861. He resigned his connection with the 
United States service on March 31st, 1863. 

Captain Robert C. Buchanan was appointed lieutenant- 
colonel of the Fourth infantry on September 9th, 1861, and 
afterwards nominated for a volunteer brigadier-general's 
commission ; but being too far advanced in years to endure 
the fatigues and laborious marches in the field during the 
civil war, he was principally kept in command of posts and 
garrisons within the Union lines. 

Captain Benjamin Alvord became a brigadier-general of 
volunteers during the war of the rebellion. 

Lieutenant and Adjutant Henry Prince obtained a com- 
mission as brigadier-general of volunteers, dating from 
April 28th, 1862, and participated in the campaigns in North 
Carolina and Virginia. At the beginning of 1864 he was 
in command of the Second division of the Third army 
corps. 

Lieutenant Christopher C. Augur distinguished himself 
during the rebellion in the various capacities of brigade, 
division, and corps commander, and, on January ist, 1864, 
held the command of the Department of Washington, and 
of the Twenty-second army corps, with head-quarters at 
the national capital. Rank, major-general of volunteers, 
from August 9th, 1862. 

Lieutenant Henry M. Judah was appointed a brigadier- 
general of volunteers on the 21st of March, 1862; distin- 
guished himself in the pursuit of the rebel guerilla chief. 
General John H. Morgan, and in the Eastern Tennessee 
campaign of 1863. On January ist, 1864, he held the com- 
mand of a division in the Twenty-third army corps, which 
formed a part of General Grant's Military Division of the 
Mississippi. 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 



99 



Lieutenant Alexander Hays was appointed a brigadier- 
general of volunteers from September 29th, 1862, he having 
previously held the command of a company of the Sixteenth 
regiment of United States regular infantry. At the begin- 
ning of 1864 he ^as in command of a division in the 
Second army corps, then with the Army of the Potomac. 

Lieutenant David A.Russell, having held the rank of major 
of the Eighth regiment of regular infantry, was appointed 
a brigadier-general of volunteers, on November 29th, 1862, 
and distinguished himself during 1863, while in command 
of a brigade, and afterwards of a division of the Second 
army corps, then with the Army of the Potomac. 

It will thus be seen that the young second lieutenant, of 
the Mexican war, has far outstripped all his regimental com- 
panions — many of whom then outranked him ; and he has 
done so by his military merit alone. 

The struggles in Mexico having at last settled down into 
the mere brigandage which always follows large wars, the 
various volunteer troops of the United States army were 
disbanded, and the regular regiments ordered back to the 
United States. Lieutenant Grant came home with his regi- 
ment — the Fourth regular infantry — and disembarked 
within the harbor of New York. The regiment was then 
distributed in companies and sections among the various 
northern frontier defences, along the borders of the States 
of Michigan and New York ; and In one of these forts the 
young brevet captain commanded his company. 

In 1848 he was married to Julia T. Dent, eldest daughter 
of Mr. Frederick Dent, a successful and widely known 
merchant of St. Louis, and after a short leave of absence 
returned with his wife to Sackett's Harbor, where his regi- 
ment was then stationed. He remained at Sackett's Har- 
bor till 1849, and in September of that year he was again 
appointed regimental quartermaster, which he held till 1853. 

In the fall of 1849 ^^'^^ regiment moved to Fort Brady, 
near Detroit, where it rested two years and then returned to 
Sackett's Harbor. 

In June, 1851, the head-quarters of the Fourth were re- 
moved to Sackett's Harbor, New York, a village of a thou- 



lOO LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

sand people. The spot was not far off where, a hundred 
years before, In the old French war. Grant's grand-uncle, 
and his great-grandfather, were killed. In the war of 1812, 
too, Sackett's was a point of great importance, and the ren- 
dezvous of the American fleet on the lake. Here Henry 
Eckford made himself famous by building one man-of-war 
in forty-five days from the time the first tree was cut for 
her hull, and getdng another hundred-gun frigate, one hun- 
dred and eighty-four feet long, and of thirty-two hundred 
tons burden, almost ready for launching In thirty-six days. 
The unexpected declaration of peace caused work upon 
her to be suspended. So the government built a wooden 
house over her, and she perches now, looking just as Eck- 
ford left her half a century ago, but with her huge timbers 
a mass of powder post, and as soft as cork. Hard by stands 
an old stone house, erected at the same time as a hotel, 
and then the largest building between the Hudson and the 
Pacific. 

When Grant w^ent to Sackett's Harbor it contained sev- 
eral old block-houses, built for Indian fighting. One still 
stands, and by doing duty as a stable, shows to what base 
uses we may return. The railroad has reduced Sackett's 
to an uneasy urban ghost. It has a custom-house, but no 
imports; and a naval stadon, commanded by an admiral 
who manifests the utmost efficiency compatible with the fact 
that there is not a war vessel of any kind within his endre 
department. 

The Fourth was established in the pleasant Madison 
Barracks, of stone, half a mile from the lake, which afforded 
agreeable residences for the officers and their waves. 

Grant, who sdll retained his capable and trustworthy 
quartermaster-sergeant, had comparatively little to do but 
sign his name to official documents and draw his pay. An 
enthusiasdc friend "in the village now has hanging in his 
parlor, framed and glazed, a nodce dated July 2d, 1851, in- 
viung sealed proposals for supplying the garrison for one 
year with fresh beef, "of good, wholesome quality, necks 
and shanks to be excluded," and signed, " U. S. Grant, 
Brevet-Captain, and A. A. C. S., Fourth Infantry." 



THE MEXICAN WAR. lOI 

In this quiet hamlet the quartermaster won his usual 
reputation. 

" I can't see," said the collector of customs to one of his 
clerks, who had become much attached to Grant, "what you 
find in that man to be so fond of his company." 

The friend insisted that there was a great deal more in 
" that man " than he had credit for ; that he was full of 
knowledge, not only of affairs, but even of mechanics, and 
could give much curious information about machinery. 

He always seemed careless and at leisure, but close ob- 
servers noticed that his eye took in much of which his tongue 
gave no report. Then, as now, he would quietly scrutinize 
a new visitor from head to foot, as if to read his character 
through and through. Though by inclination a worshipper 
with the Methodists, here he was a frequent, and his wife a 
regular, attendant at the Episcopal church, and when 
money was raised to erect a new house he joined in a sub- 
scription paper, suU preserved because it bears his auto- 
graph. 

Having seen the evil effects of liquor on brother officers 
in peace times, he became a Son of Temperance soon after 
reaching Sackett's and drank no spirits whatever during 
his residence there. He also joined the Odd-Fellows, at- 
tending all their weekly meetings, though not taking any 
active part. But once chancing to be put upon a committee, 
he dissented from the majority report which was made by 
Messrs. Ford and Dana, one a lawyer, the other a bank 
cashier, and both leading citizens. At first it was thought 
a little presuming that a minority report, signed simply 
" U. S. Grant," should undertake to combat the views of 
men of such prominence and capacity. But the document 
proved so able as to kindle a suspicion that after all the 
quartermaster was quite competent to say his say when 
occasion demanded. 

A citizen of Sackett's Harbor relates that one quarrel 
excited a mild approach to profanity. " I tell the tale as it 
was told to me." Naturally, a horse was at the bottom of 
it. Tvv^o acquaintances, Phillips and De Wolf, were on the 
ice of the lake to " time " a horse they had just bouo^ht. 



I02 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



Never speak to me again. 



The first half-mile was done in one twelve. De Wolf 
shouted to urge the racer on to higher speed, at which the 
animal showed a little restiveness. Phillips, expecting that 
the next thine would be his heels through the dasher, 
incontinently rolled out on the ice, taking the reins with 
him. De Wolf dropped to the bottom of the sleigh, and 
only recovered the lines after the frightened horse had run 
two miles, at the imminent risk of his own and his driver's 
neck. Grant saw the whole scene and bitterly upbraided 
Phillips for deserting his friend ; but Phillips alleged that it 
was involuntary, as he had been thrown from the sleigh. 
Grant hotly replied : 

" It's a lie ! How could he fling you out and not 
De Wolf .^^ You are a coward. 
If you do I'll kick you." 

Petty races, and even contests between a soldiers' fire 
company and a citizens' fire company interested the officers. 
In sooth these military heroes, deprived of the spirit-stirring 
drum, the ear-piercing fife, and other fascinations of the big 
wars, that make ambition virtue, found themselves also de- 
prived of the tranquil mind. They were sadly at a loss for 
amusement and caught at anything. One writes me: 

" Grant's life as an army officer was a very quiet, une- 
ventful one. I was in the regiment with him during a por- 
tion of the Mexican war, and afterward on the frontier, 
but really can say nothing of his sayings or doings worth 
mentioning. He went about a good deal with horse-fan- 
ciers, took his drinks, smoked his pipe incessantly, played 
loo, and at length, after going to Sackett's Harbor, joined 
the ' Sons,' all in a very prosy, commonplace sort of 
fashion. He read little, though I remember his expressing 
some liking for Reynolds' writings. 

" During his whole connection with the regiment he 
would have been considered, both by his brother officers 
and himself, about as likely to reach the position of Pope 
of Rome, as General-in-chief, or President of the United 
States. He was regarded as a restless, enercjetic man, who 
must have occupation, and plenty of it, for his own good, 
but sincere and true and an amiable, good fellow. He was 



THE MEXICAN WAR. IO3 

modest and unambitious — such a man as In our land of 
pretension and bluster could not be expected to go far. 

" It required just such opportunities, events, and good 
luck to bring out the strong qualities and soldierly merits 
of Grant's character. Had he remained In the regular 
service, I think he would have jogged on quietly, doing duty 
with his regiment. But if circumstances had placed him In 
the cavalry, I believe he would have made his mark as a 
cavalry leader. He had all the requisite qualities, the 
physique and the morale!' 

The Fourth infantry was sent to Fort Columbus in the 
harbor of New York, preparatory to sailing for the Pacific 
coast, where a rush of emigration was then setting In toward 
the newly discovered gold-fields, and troops were needed to 
protect the growing settlements from the depredations of 
Indians. The regiment proceeded by way of Panama, but 
the Panama railroad had not then been built, and the transit 
of the isthmus was attended with great difficulty, and much 
exposure to the hurtful influences of the tropical climate. 
During the passage, and after they had reached the Pacific 
side, many of the officers and men fell sick and died of 
fever and cholera, but Grant's constitution defied the ma- 
laria, and enabled him to be of great assistance to his less 
fortunate companions. The cholera became so general 
that the regiment could not continue its voyage but was 
compelled to encamp on one of the islands in the bay of 
Panama, where it remained for several weeks. After It 
reached Oregon, decimated in numbers, one battalion, in- 
cluding Grant's company, was ordered to take post at 
Columbia Barracks, near the Dalles of the Columbia river, 
where It remained for some time, making occasional expe- 
ditions aorainst the hostile Indians, in all of which Grant 
took an active part, adding to his varied experience, and 
oralnlno- useful Information in regard to the Indian character 
and the reserves of the neighboring country. He soon 
was ordered to Fort Vancouver, Oregon. 

Grant departed with his regiment to this forlorn spot, 
isolated from civilization on the east by an intervening 
wilderness more than 2,000 miles in breadth^ and from 



I04 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

civilization. Vancouver is eighty miles from the sea, envel- 
oped in the melancholy shade of primitive forests. When 
Grant reached it, he found it still retained as one of the 
central seats of traffic and distribution by the Hudson's 
Bay Company, which, as everybody knows, is one of those 
gigantic monopolies w^hich were freely granted by Charles 
II. to his favorites. Its charter o-ave it the exclusive ricrht 
to trade with the Indians around that crreat northern orulf. 
Step by step has its jurisdiction marched to the southward, 
extending these same engrossing privileges over all British 
North America. Durino- the era of contlictine claims be- 
tween the United States and Great Britain upon Oregon, 
it had pushed these pretensions into that territory, wove 
over it a network of chief and subordinate establishments, 
and now exercised unlimited control over the nomadic 
Indians whom the Fourth infantry had been despatched to 
quell. The station of the company, in the centre of the 
clearing, w^ore all the aspects of a military post. An im- 
posing stockade enclosed an area of about seven acres, with 
mounted bastions at two of its angles; w^ithin w^ere the 
governor's residence, two small buildings for clerks, and a 
ranee of dwellinors for families ; without was another store- 
house, under lease to the government; and a few hundred 
yards farther to the east, rising from a plain upon the very 
edge of immemorial woods, were the log-houses known as 
the Columbia Barracks ; and within an arrow's flight of our 
flag-staff is a group of hovels, occupied by Indians, servants, 
and Kanackas. Four companies of the Fourth are here, 
with Grant still quartermaster : one company is at Fort 
Dallas, higher up the Columbia, and the remainder are so 
distributed as to guard and keep open communication be- 
tween Oregon and California, with assistant quartermasters 
for their respective stations. 

At this desolate station Grant vegetated for one year. 
To his active mind it was inexpressibly irksome. With the 
exception of quarterly and annual returns his office is a 
sinecure, for supplies are all sent by steamer. 

As he had to receive and ship supplies, his residence was 
on the bank of the river, in a large two-story dwelling. It 



THE MEXICAN WAR. IO5 

was sawed and framed In Boston, and carried around the 
Horn to California; but In 1850 lumber grew so cheap in 
San Francisco that Quartermaster Robert Allen bought it 
for gi,ooo, and shipped It to Ingalls. After paying for its 
transportation, It was the cheapest as It was the best house 
at the post. It was known as "Quartermaster's Ranch." 

Here in April, 1853, arrived Lieutenant George B. Mc- 
Clellan, of the engineers, to survey the west end of a 
proposed Northern Pacific Railway. Grant was kept busy 
for some weeks In fitting out the expedition, and McClellan 
was his guest. The two young officers, who had known 
each other In Mexico, were thrown much together, eating 
at the same table, and sleeping under the same roof, for 
nearly three months. Did any suspicion ever stir their 
hearts of the high place which one was just to miss, and the 
other easily to gain ? 

The former drum-major of the Fourth relates that he was 
indebted to Grant for the unromantic but utilitarian Q-[(t of 

o 

a sow. Pigs were pigs In that market, thanks to the won- 
derful development of California, and the recipient soon 
found himself the possessor of a small fortune obtained by 
selling a dozen at forty dollars apiece. An officer states 
that he and the quartermaster shipped potatoes and other 
produce to San Francisco, and sometimes obtained rich 
returns. 

Grant cared nothing for dancing, and very little for hunt- 
ing. But he bought one of the finest horses in the Terri- 
tory, and found his daily recreation In galloping through 
the beautiful woods. A brother officer writes : 

" One mornincr while sitting with some comrades in front 
of the officers' quarters, we observed Grant riding on his 
fine horse toward Major Hathaway's battery, which was In 
park about 250 yards distant. As Grant drew near the 
guns, and we were observing the motions of his fine animal, 
we saw him gather the reins, take a tighter grip on his 
cigar, pull down his hat firmly on his head, and seat him- 
self securely in his saddle. ' Grant Is going to leap the 
battery,' cried two or three of the officers, and we all stood 
up to see him do it. He ran his horse at the pieces, and 



I06 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

put him over the four guns one after another as easily and 
gracefully as a circus rider." 

He remained at Fort Vancouver for more than a year, 
widely known and liked. His quarters were the temporary 
home of all visitors. He was an admirable host, and made 
his guests thoroughly welcome. There was always quiet 
enjoyment, and sometimes boisterous hilarity at the quar- 
termaster's hearth, when old army friends or favorite 
civilians were there for a ni^ht. His comrades did not fail 
to notice the singular vividness and comprehensiveness 
with which he narrated the stirring engagements of the 
war, and how accurately his memory like an open book 
reproduced not detached incidents, but the action of the 
whole army as a unit — what it tried to do, what it accom- 
plished or failed in, and what errors weakened its plan. 
After one of these talks they would remark : 

" How clear-headed Sam Grant is in describing a battle ! 
He seems to have the whole thing in his head." 

In August, 1853, he was promoted from a brevet captain 
to a full captain in his regiment, to fill a vacancy caused by 
the death of Captain Bliss, famous as Taylor's adjutant- 
general during the Mexican war. Early in October he 
started for Fort Humboldt, California, to take command of 
his company, F. Shortly after, during a visit to San Fran- 
cisco, in conjunction with three other officers, he leased the 
Union Hotel on Kearny street — novv^ a part of the City 
Hotel — for a sort of club billiard-room, at $500 per month. 
Subscriptions were obtained, and the enterprise might have 
been successful had the officers been better business men. 
Grant could not give it his personal attention, agents were 
derelict or dishonest, and the rents did not come in. After 
advancing a good deal of money, he suffered as usual for 
believing other men as just and honest as himself, and the 
house was given up. The old lease is still preserved as 
one of the curiosities of San Francisco. 

Grant's commission as captain reached him after he had 
been a year at Vancouver ; and he is forthwith ordered to 
Humboldt Bay in California, where his company is now 
stationed. The Indians had been active in Humboldt 



THE MEXICAN WAR. IO7 

county, and the same kind of alarms which for a season 
reheved the inactivity of Vancouver had furnished the 
company at Humboldt Bay with busy idleness ; but the 
quiet of an uninhabited island is not more serene than that 
of Humboldt Bay when Grant reached it. 

Grant spent several months commanding his company at 
Humboldt, a post 240 miles north of San Francisco, and 
seventy south of the Oregon line, built for protection against 
the Indians. The barracks and officers' quarters were of 
hewn timber, plastered within, and adorned with outside 
chimneys of stone. They stood on a plateau, surrounded 
by pleasant prairies and dark woods of spruce and pine, 
and affording a splendid view of Humboldt Bay. 

The only town in the vicinity was Eureka, three miles 
from the fort. It was originally and accurately surveyed 
by James T. Ryan, with an Instrument improvised of two 
vials and a bit of wood. Ryan had all the versatility which 
new countries brinor to the surface. He wanted to build 
a saw-mill, but labor was high and machinery scarce. So 
he bought the old steamer Santa Clara, and took her up 
the dangerous coast to the new city of Eureka. Just before 
starting his compass was stolen. He found a little river- 
compass with the glass broken, and taking a pane from his 
pilot-house window, cut out a circular piece with a pair of 
scissors w^hile holding it under water, and fitted It into the 
top of his instrument, by the aid of which he ran his steamer 
safely into Humboldt Bay. Then raising her upon the 
ground without moving the machinery, he used her power 
to drive a saw-mill beside her. In which he employed sixty 
men and cut out 80,000 feet of lumber per day. This 
ingenious and typical pioneer was afterwards elected a 
brigadier-general of militia and a member of the California 
Senate. In 1861 Senator McDougall thus introduced him 
to Abraham Lincoln : 

" Mr. President, this is General Ryan, a loyal neighbor 
of mine, who can build a cathedral and preach In it, a ship 
and sail it, or an engine and run it." 

When Grant was at Fort Humboldt, Eureka consisted 
of Ryan's mill and twenty houses. It was a pleasant situ- 



Io8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

ation, and Its hospitality made it a favorite resort for the 
officers. Ryan kept a barrel of whiskey always on tap, and 
his well-furnished table was supplied with venison, ducks, 
o-eese, snipe, grouse, chicken, sweet milk, and biscuits of 
Genesee flour; for in those days California obtained wheat 
from New York instead of shipping her own to Gotham 
and even to London, China, and Japan. 

Communication with San Francisco was solely by water, 
and ships were from ten days to six weeks on the way. 
They brought mails without the least regularity. The 
officers looked out anxiously every morning for a sail, and 
when one appeared, galloped down to Eureka for their 
letters or a stray newspaper. A number of Indians em- 
ployed about the mill gave picturesqueness to the little 
town. Sometimes an evening was enlivened with a dance, 
when the few women of the neighborhood were in great 
demand. 

Among Ryan's possessions was a horse called Eclipse, 
for which our captain had a special admiration. Twelve 
years later, when Grant was at City Point, just before his 
final campaign, Ryan called on him, and found him with 
Sheridan and 'Sherman, their heads bent over a map. 
Grant, who never forgets an old acquaintance, instantly 
recognized him. Inquired for his family, for the old saw- 
mill,'and particularly for Eclipse, saying : 

" He was the finest horse I ever saw west of the Rocky 
Mountains." 

An officer remembers that, asked how he liked the clams 
which abound there. Grant pronounced them "a first-rate 
substitute for gutta-percha oysters." 

He frequendy visited his brother-in-law, Lewis Dent, 
who was running a ferry-boat at Knight's Ferry, on the 
Stanislaus river, and was at one time Interested In that 
enterprise. There are traditions in the neighborhood of 
Grant's helping to run the boat, and once, when In a pecu- 
liarly jovial rnood, of his appearing on the road driving 
three horses tandem at a spanking pace, with three buggies 
In long procession whirling after, to the amazement of the 
villafrers. 



THE MEXICAN WAR. IO9 

In truth, some relief seemed necessary, for life at Hum- 
boldt was insufferably dull. The line captain's duties were 
fewer and less onerous than the quartermaster's had been, 
and the discipline was far more rigid and irksome. No 
greater misfortune could have happened to him than this 
enforced idleness. He had little work, no family with him, 
took no pleasure in the amusements of his brother officers 
— dancing, billiards, hunting, fishing, and the like — and 
riding alone, however inspiriting, may grow monotonous 
after several months of it ! 

The buildings of the post erected by Quartermaster 
Rufus Ingalls consisted of two-story barracks of lumber 
for the soldiers, and one-story log quarters, with balconies 
looking out upon the river, for the officers. 

The nearest civilization was not many miles away at Port- 
land, Oregon, then a little settlement in the woods with a 
single street of one-story frame houses. Thither went our 
mardal heroes for dancing parties and other amusements, 
though through the winter they had clever theatricals at 
the garrison. 

The neighboring land afforded excellent hunting of deer, 
elk, bears, and blue grouse, and the clear lakes abounded 
in ducks, geese, swans, and delicious trout. These luxu- 
ries, and the finest salmon in the world, caught in the 
Columbia, enabled the officers to fare sumptuously every 
day. 

Grant disliked this life, and was anxious to be once 
more with his family. He therefore sent in his resignation, 
to take effect July 31st, 1854, remarking to a friend: 
" Whoever hears of me in ten years will hear of a well-to-do 
old Missouri farmer." 

At a period when his country was in perfect repose, 
when there was no call for army service, when the special 
mission upon which he was exiled into the wilderness had 
been fully performed, and there was nothing to resist the 
paramount claim of the wife and children upon his protec- 
tion, he resigned his commission in the army, and, hav- 
ing obtained a leave of absence, joined his family at St. 
Louis. 



no LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

During the following seven years we find Grant as farmer 
and collector at St. Louis, and leather dealer at Galena. 
In a period of profound national pedce, he discards his 
epaulets, that he may enjoy domestic life. He throws up 
his captain's pay, with the certain knowledge that he must 
earn a livelihood for himself and family by the labor of his 
hands and the sweat of his brow. 

With no fortune of his own and with few acquaintances, 
Grant was thrown at once upon his own resources. He 
setded upon a small farm near St. Louis, which had been 
presented to Mrs. Grant by her father. He threw aside 
completely the habits of army life and went to work bravely 
with his own hands to better his fortune. His first labor 
was to assist in hewing the logs, and building a house upon 
his farm. As soon as it was finished he occupied it with 
his family, so that he might be entirely independent of the 
world, as well as close to the fields he intended to cultivate. 
Grant worked hard himself and displayed excellent judg- 
ment in all that he did. To be sure his profits were not 
large, at any time, but they were his only dependence. 

He took great interest in his stock, and being fond of his 
new occupation, he devoted himself to it with a will. Dur- 
ing the winter season he employed men to clear land, and 
chop wood, and hauled it to St. Louis for sale, driving one 
team in person, while his litde son drove another, thus sav- 
ing the expense of two extra hands. He ploughed and 
planted in the spring, and when the summer had ripened 
his crops he was the foremost hand in the harvest-field. 

Several years before the war began, one of his friends, 
happening to be at St. Louis, heard that Grant was living 
near by, "and drove out for the purpose of seeing him. 
Calling at the house, he inquired for Captain Grant. The 
servant who answered his summons at the door informed 
him that the Captain would probably be found in the 
meadow, harvesting. The officer walked down to the field, 
as the servant suggested, but not discovering the Captain, 
sat down in the shade of a tree for the purpose of waidng 
for the approach of four men whom he saw mowing at a 
distance. After a short time the mowers came abreast of 



THE MEXICAN WAR. Ill 

him, and going out to meet them he was surprised to find 
that the leading mower, covered with perspiration, and in 
his shirt-sleeves, was the friend for whom he was seeking. 

Grant was economical as well as industrious, and if he 
could not make money rapidly for himself, he could tell 
others how to save it. While living at his father-in-law's, 
he observed that all the rooms in the house were warmed 
by wood fires, in ample old-fashioned fire-places, and that 
it kept one man continually busy to cut fuel for them. Near 
by was a colliery, the owners of which were paying fifty 
cents apiece for stout saplings with which to shore up the 
roof of their mine. Grant suggested that he could cut 
and haul poles enough in one day to buy coal for an entire 
month, and in two more to pay for a grate or stove in every 
room. This was a new idea, and a few days thereafter was 
put into successful application. 

After four years of farming, Grant resolved to try some- 
thing else. He leased his farm, and removed to St. Louis, 
where he established and conducted for a short time a real 
estate office. 

An old citizen declares, that in those days he could not 
have borrowed a hundred dollars in that country neighbor- 
hood. This may be an exaggeration of the fact that he was 
sorely straitened for money ; but he was neither penurious 
nor wanting In public spirit. For a poor widow in a neigh- 
boring county, who had been burned out and her children 
left without shelter, he raised, by personal effort, a sum 
sufficient to relieve her. And when asked to contribute for 
the building of a new church, he replied : 

" I am very glad to ; we ought to have a comfortable 
place for preaching. I don't attend as much as I should, 
but Julia and the children do. We ought also to have a 
Sabbath-school in the neighborhood." 

While living at Wishtonwish one winter, he discovered 
that some interloper was cutting and carrying away wood 
from the Hardscrabble tract, two miles distant. On a 
bright moonlight night he started to catch the thief. While 
sitting upon a stump, he heard a team coming, and hid 
himself. A burly fellow, who rented a neighboring farm, 




li'.l V 11' ' 



(112) 



1 



THE MEXICAN WAR. II3 

Stopped his horses within fifty feet of him, chopped a tree, 
cut it up, loaded it, and then started for the main road. 
Grant took a short cut, intercepted him, and accosted him 
wfth an air of surprise : 

" Halloo, Bill ! going to St. Louis with your wood, I sup- 
pose r 

" Y— es." 

" How much do you ask for it? " 

"About four dollars." 

*' Well I'll take it. Bring it over to my house." 

" No ; I have promised it to a man in town." 

" But I must have it. Now there's no use in hesitating ; 
you must haul this load to my house, and pay me twenty 
dollars for what you have cut and carried away before. 
That won't be more than half-price, you know." 

"If I don't, I suppose you'll sue me before the squire?" 

" No, we won't trouble the squire or the public, but will 
settle the matter riorht here and now." 

And the captain, his sense of humor giving way to his 
indignation, sprang forward and seized by the collar the 
huge trespasser, who instantly cried : 

" Hold on ! I'll do it ; but don't say a word to any- 
body." 

The wood was delivered, the money paid, and the thiev- 
ing discontinued. 

Grant's neighbors found him, though very sociable, silent 
about persons of whom he could not speak well. Often he 
kept his hearers sitting up until midnight around the wide- 
mouthed cheerful fireplace at Hardscrabble or Whitehaven, 
listening intently to his vivid narrations of army expe- 
riences. Though exceedingly amiable, and ready to give 
or take a joke, he was possessed of a certain dignity which 
made it impossible to impose upon or be too familiar with 
him. 

He was called the most industrious farmer in the whole 
country. His hands had grown hard and horny, and his 
frame rheumatic and benr, as if from premature old age. 
Yet in those four years he had been unable to "make both 
ends meet," and his father had advanced him some two 
8 



ill ^MliUMll[Jj£ ^^^E^^^^k, 




a 



,jf;^^^!j ^''^''^ _,^M;iJl^^,j,'l 



("4) 



THE MliXICAN WAK. I I 5 

thousand dollars. Farming was a failure, and it was time 
to find some other employment. 

On the 1st day of January, 1859, Grant formed a part- 
nership with H. Boggs, under the firm, Boggs & Grant, 
General Agents, Collect Rent, Negotiate Loans, Buy and 
Sell Real Estate, No. 35 Pine street, St. Louis, Mo. The 
partners knew each other so well, that no written agree- 
ment was necessary. 

At first, Grant left his family at Hardscrabble. He could 
not afford quarters at a hotel or even at a boarding-house, 
but Boggs, who lived on South Fifteenth street, had an 
unfurnished room which he was invited to occupy. He 
lived in it in genuine camp style. There was no carpet, 
and a bedstead with one mattress and a wash-bowl standing 
upon a chair were the only furniture. Here Grant remained 
for two months, taking his breakfasts and suppers at the 
house, and on Saturday nights walking out to Hardscrabble. 
He was always at his city home of an evening, and was very 
quiet and companionable. 

Early in the spring he sold at auction his farming tools 
and stock and rented Hardscrabble. Then he removed to 
St. Louis, and took up his residence in a little frame house 
on the corner of Seventh and Lynch streets. It was near 
the river, not altogether a pleasant neighborhood, but the 
rent was only twenty-five dollars per month. 

The old office of Boggs & Grant yet stands — though 
in the changed numbering it is now designated as 219 — in 
Pine street, one of the narrow St. Louis thoroughfares 
which unfortunately have never been burned out and 
widened since the old French rule. The law-firm occupied 
the entire lower floor of the ancient brick dwelling, of which 
we present an accurate view. It consisted of two large 
rooms, connected by folding doors. Beside a front window 
looking out on the street stood the desk of Boggs & Grant. 
Here, talking through the open window with customers on 
the sidewalkT Boggs negotiated many a loan and heard the 
gossip of many a summer afternoon. The projecting sign 
bore the words : " Boggs & Grant. Real Estate Agents. 
Money loaned on Real Estate security." 



1 J 6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Boo-o-s, who had a good many houses to rent, and a 
good many tenants to collect of, inducted his new partner 
into the business by taking him about town and introduc- 
ing him to all the leading customers. Then, at the sug- 
gestion of Colonel Dent, he left Grant to look after the 
business while he visited Philadelphia, where, as a young 
man, he had resided for many years and formed acquaint- 
ances among wealthy citizens. Money in Philadelphia 
was worth but five or six per cent, while in St. Louis ten 
per cent, was legal interest and fifteen often the current 
rate. 

He succeeded in effecting an arrangement with one capi- 
talist in Philadelphia and another in New York to let the 
firm have four hundred thousand dollars at eight per cent., 
to loan out in small sums secured on real estate. Returnino- 

o 

to St. Louis early in March, in excellent spirits, he adver- 
tised that Boggs & Grant were ready to advance money on 
real estate at ten per cent., the borrower paying the two 
per cent, additional to cover expenses of examining titles 
and nei:otiatin<r the loan. 

Like all advertisements which offer money instead of 
asking it, this brought hundreds of applicants, but the firm 
rejected some as unsafe, and the attorneys of the Eastern 
capitalists — who, it was agreed, must be satisfied with the 
securities — refused to accept others. The end of the prom- 
ising scheme was that l^oggs & Grant made about enough 
out of it to pay the expenses of the senior partner's eastern 
trip. 

The captain engaged in the new business w^ith all his 
cn(!rgy, though incapacitated somewhat for the first four 
months by ague antl rheumatism which he brought from 
Hardscrabble. Often, (hiring the spring afternoons, his 
"chiU" would come on, and so weaken him that McClellan 
or liillycr had to support him to the Third street omnibus, 
by which he rode homeward. 

Boggs. on his return, found that Grant had diligendy 
coll(?cted the n^nts, and let all the vacant houses to good 
tenants, except one, in which a plausible but undesirable 
woman had established herself She was afterward o-ot rid 



i 



i 




(.17) 



Il8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

of only by the combined and persistent efforts of the land- 
lord and the two agents. 

If Grant ever neglected his duties, it was when he called 
upon some army officer with a bill for rent. Then he some- 
times would light his cigar, discuss for an afternoon the old 
campaigns, and quite forget that he was junior partner in 
the firm of Boggs & Grant, real estate agents, with an un- 
receipted bill for rent in his pocket. 

His quickness at figures was of great service to Boggs 
when a customer stopped at the window to get a note dis- 
counted at a trifie higher than the legal rate. Nevertheless, 
the senior partner, from the serene heights of long business 
experience, rather looked down upon the junior, who care- 
fully performed a clerk's duties, and meekly accepted a 
round scolding when of a morning, as sometimes happened, 
he was late at the office. Occasionally it would be ten or 
eleven o'clock before he took his place at the desk, pleading 
in extenuation that Mrs. Grant, who had several children to 
care for, was late with the breakfast. The " scrabble " in 
town was quite as hard as it had been in the country. A 
lady, whose husband had requested her to call on Mrs. 
Grant, asked on her return : 

*' Why did you send me there ? The house is shabbily 
furnished, and they must be very poor." 

The husband replied that Grant was a most estimable 
gentleman, though with litde business capacity. On further 
acquaintance she became devotedly attached to Mrs. Grant, 
and formed a friendship which still continues. 

Grant traded Hardscrabble with an attache of the court- 
house for a frame cottage on the corner of Ninth and Barton 
streets, with a higli roof and pleasant overhanging shade- 
tr(!es. To this dwelling, then quite in the outskirts of the 
town, he removed in July, 1859, and occupied it during the 
rcmaind(!r of his rf^sidence in St. Louis. 

Wh(!n Grant took the house, there was a mortgage upon 
it for fifteen hundred dollars, which the former owner as- 
sumed, giving as security a deed of trust on Hardscrabble. 
A year or two later, when the deed fell due, he failed to pay 
it ; so Grant was compelled to sue for the recovery of Hard- 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 



iig 



scrabble, and several years of litigation followed. After 
Donelson and Vicksburg, when the case was in court in 
St. Louis, an old woman who had lived near by was on the 
witness stand. In reply to questions, she stated in detail 
who had lived in this house. One year it was Jones, the 
next Smith, and so on. 

*' Who lived in it in 1859 ? " asked the lawyer. 

" Some man by the name of Grant," she replied. 

" Do you know where he is now ? " 

"I think he is somewhere in the war. It seems to me I 
have heard of him there!' 

So great was the law's delay, that only in 1867 did Grant 
recover Hardscrabble. He afterwards bought Wishton- 
wish and the Whitehaven house, with six hundred acres 
of the old place. 

The earnest captain tried hard for success in business. 
He dressed plainly, and walked in and out of the busy 
office without attracting any attention. The three attor- 
neys thought him laboring under some special depression 
of spirits. His eyes, always sad, were then unusually so. 
His favorite theme was still the batdes he had fought, but 
he related them in a matter-of-fact way, without the least 
halo of imagination or romance. He was minutely ac- 
quainted with the Italian war then in progress. He studied 
newspapers, pored over maps, and frequently said: 

"This movement was a mistake. If I commanded the 
army, I would do thus and so." 

The attorneys would smile, and think it of very little 
consequence what their humble acquaintance would! do 
under such impossible circumstances. They did not be- 
lieve much in village Hampdens, or mute inglorious Mil- 
tons, but they enjoyed his chat. When night came, he 
would not go home as long as any one remained to talk or 
listen. 

Hillyer and he discussed politics a good deal, for an anti- 
slavery controversy was raging in the slave State of Mis- 
souri. Hillyer's sympathies were republican, Grant's dem- 
ocratic. Hillyer, quick and fluent, would lead his oppo- 
nent off to side issues, but Grant, following slowly, always 



120 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

brought him back to the main question, and held him to it 
tenaciously. 

The firm did not make enough to support two families. 
Grant's friends were glad to lend him money, for his genu- 
ineness and uprightness had won gready upon them ; but 
still they looked upon him in that patronizing way with 
which egotisdc Success is wont to regard modest and be- 
wilderecf Unpracticality. They thought him a litde out of 
place on this busding sphere— one of the " people such as 
hang on the world's skirts rather than actually belong to 
it." "^ Still they were a good deal drawn to him, and ear- 
nesdy hoped — the most ambitious hope they had for him^ 
that some day he might succeed in earning a good liveli- 
hood. 

The partners had many conferences upon their affairs, 
and Grant saw the necessity for some change. Just then 
the county engineership of St. Louis became vacant. It 
was a post worth $1,900 a year, and one for which Grant's 
West Point educadon rendered him thoroughly competent. 
Therefore he determined to o^et it, and thus increase the 
revenues of the firm. The appointment rested with the 
county commissioners, to whom he wrote the following 
business-like application: 

St. Louis, August isth, 1859. 
Hon. CorxTY Commissioners, St. Louis County, Missouri. 

Gr-:NiM-:.\iK.\ : — I beg leave to submit myself as an applicant for the 
office of county engineer, should the office be rendered vacant, and at the 
same lime to submit the names of a few citizens who have been kind 
enough to recommend me for the office. I have made no effort to get a 
large number of names, nor the names of persons witli whom I am not 
personally ac(|uainted. I enclose herewith also a statement from Prof. 
J. J. Reynolds, who was a classmate of mine at West Point, as to qualifi- 
cations. 

Siiould your honorable body see proper to give me the appointment, I 
pledge myself to give the office my entire attention, and shall hope to 
give general satisfaction. Very respectfully 

Your obedient servant, 

U. S. Grant. 

This document is still preserved among the records of 



THE MEXICAN WAR. 



121 



the county. On the back it bears these endorsements — the 
first official, the rest exuberant: 

''Application of U. S. Grant to be appointed County Engineer. Re- 
jected. 

''Attest, S. W. Eagar, Jr., 

^''Scci'etary Board of St. Louis County Covimissio7iers.''^ 

''Note. — The within-named Captain U. S. Grant is now a Major-Gen- 
eral in the United States Army, and is in command of the Department 
of the Tennessee. September, 1862." 

''Nota Belie. — Captain U. S. Grant is now Lieutenant-General of the 
United States, and the highest officer in the service. May 25th, 1864." 
"The hero of Vicksburg." 
" Captured Richmond April, 1865." 
"Captured the whole Confederate army, 1865." 
" General United States army, 1866." 

One inscription more remains to be made before the 
record of Grant's official positions under the republic is 
complete. 

The appended recommendadon ran thus: 

The undersigned take pleasure in recommending Captain U. S. Grant 
3* y- suitable person for County Engineer of St. Louis County: 



N. J. Eaton, 
John P. Helfenstein, 
F. Overstoltz, 
L. A. Benoist, 
James M. Hughes, 
Lemuel G. Pardee, 
James C. Moody, 
Felix Coste, 

C. S. Purkitt, 
J. Addison Barrett, 

D. M. Frost, 

Edward Walsh 



Robert M. Renick, 
Robert J. Hornsby, 
G. W. Fishback, 
J. McKnight, 
J. O'Fallon, 
John F. Darby, 
Thomas E. Tutt, 
T. Grimsley, 
S. B. Churchill, 
J. M. Mitchell, 
J. G. McClellan, 

Tayl 



August 1st, 1859. 
Charles A. Pope, 
W. S. Hillyer, 
William L. Pipkin, 
K. McKenzie, 
Baman & Co., 
C. W. Ford, 
A. S. Robinson, 
George W. Moore, 
R. A. Barnes, 
Thomas Marshall, 
John Horn, 
or Blow. 



All the signers were prominent citizens; many afterward 
became members of the Confederate army. Blow was a 
wholesale druggist ; Benoist & Co., an old family of bank- 
ers ; Pope, an eminent surgeon ; Robinson, a bank cashier; 



122 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

McKenzIe, a well-known Scotch settler, formerly of the 
Hudson Bay Company ; Ford, local superintendent of the 
United Stales Express; Fishback, editor of the St. Louis 
Demon-at; Coste, executor of the estate of Bryan MuUan- 
phy, an eccentric Irish citizen, who left three-quarters of a 
million of dollars for the benefit of immigrants passing 
through St. Louis; and Frost, an ex-captain, whom Grant 
had known in the army. He it was who, just after the 
rebellion b'jgan, was captured with his camp of Confeder- 
ates near St. Louis by General Nathaniel Lyon. He is now 
a reconstructed Confederate farmer residing near the city. 
Ford and Fishback are still in their old positions. Hillyer, of 
the law-firm, was on Grant's staff during the war, rose to the 
rank of brigadier-general, and is now connected with the 
internal revenue in New York. Moody was Hillyer's 
partner, afterw^ard a circuit judge, Impeached by the Mis- 
souri Legislature for some construction of law which it 
reprobated. McClellan was of the same firm, and is still 
practising his profession just across the street from the old 
office. 

Grant's friends worked hard for him, and his class- 
mate, J. J. Reynolds, sent in the strongest assurances of 
his fitness. His claims were duly canvassed by the com- 
missioners, but politics determined almost everything. 
There were five members of the board — Lightner, Taussig, 
and I^\irrar, Republicans, and Easton and Tippet, Demo- 
crats, errant, from his political antecedents, was supposed 
to have democratic proclivities, for in those days there was 
more truth than satire in the witticism which defined an 
"old Whig" as ''one who takes his whiskey regularly, 
and votes the Democratic ticket occasionally." 

There was no other special objection to him. His ability 
as an eiigin(!(!r was accorded. He was not much known, 
though the commissioners had occasionally seen him about 
town, a trille shabby in dress, with pantaloons tucked in 
his boots. They supposed him a good office man, but 
hardly va\\vA to the high responsibility of keeping the 
roads in order. He might answer for a clerk, but in this 
county engineership talent and efficiency were needed! 



THE MEXICAN WAR. I 23 

There was another appHcant, C. E. Salomon, a brother 
of Governor Salomon, of Wisconsin. He was a German, 
known to be a good surveyor, and frequendy seen at 
his professional work. His superior activity was an advan- 
tage, and he was also strongly pressed by the German 
citizens, who cast more than half of the endre vote of the 
county. Grant stood second in the esdmation of the com- 
missioners, though there were many other applicants. But 
Salomon quite overshadowed him, and the record shows 
the result : 

'* September 2 2d, 1859. Ordered by the board that C. E. 
Salomon be, and he is hereby appointed. County Engineer, 
to hold undl otherwise ordered by this board, at a salary 
of one hundred and sixty dollars per month." 

The vote stood three for Salomon, two for Grant. During 
the war Salomon became colonel of a German regiment, 
and fought under General Lyon. Grant believes that his 
failure to get it was most fortunate ; that if he had obtained 
it he might, perhaps, have plodded along undl now in the 
St. Louis court-house. But his disappointment was bitter. 
Nineteen hundred dollars per annum was the purse of For- 
tunatus to the modest captain, and, with unusual earnestness, 
he longed for the posidon. The obtaining of it would have 
gladdened his heart far more than the Generalship or the 
Presidency in later years. It was not a quesdon of per- 
sonal feeling, but of making sure provision for the loved 
ones at home. 

This project failing, In September, after a life of less than 
nine months, the firm of Boggs & Grant, real estate agents 
and money lenders, came to an untimely end. 



CHAPTER III. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 



Grant's determined loyalty— The breaking out of the rebellion— President Lincoln calls 
for 75,000 men— Grant drills a company at Galena— Offers his services— Assists in 
the organization of the Illinois troops— Appointed Colonel of the Twenty-first 
Illinois Regiment— His services in Missouri— Appointed Brigadier-General— Cap- 
ture of Paducah— Battle of Belmont— Grant's lesson — The value of numbers— A 
letter of Grant to his father— General Grant appointed commander of the District 
of Cairo— A grand reconnoissance— Fitting out gunboats— P^ons Henry and Don- 
elson— Commander of the District of West Tennessee— General C. F. Smith put 
in charge of the army— His death— Grant in charge age 



rain. 



Captain Grant next obtained a temporary position in 
the St. Louis custom-house, but in less than a month the 
collector died, and he was again out of employment. 
Through the fall and winter he sought work in many 
places, but found it nowhere. These were dark days, but 
he bore them calmly and patlendy. Early in the new year, 
he sent in this second application for the engineership, 
based on a current rumor: 

St. Louis, February 13M, i860. 
President County Commissioners : 

Sir: — Should the office of county engineer be vacated by the will of 
your lionorablc body, I would resj^ectfully renew the application niade by 
me in Auj,Mist last for that appointment. I would also beg leave to refer 
you to the application and recommendations then submitted, and on file 
with your board. 

1 aui, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. Grant. 

lull the vacancy did not occur, and he was destined to 
live no longer in St. Lotiis. Now, his old acquaintances 
are fond of talking of the shy, unpractical man, whose 
ftilure th(!y so little suspected, but whose slightest words 
they recall with keen interest. One lady remembers his 
almost girlish fondness for her flower-garden, a taste which 
he has manifested through his entire life. 

('24) 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. I 25 

He never told coarse stories and was never profane. 
His strongest language was the poindess Western impre- 
cation, " Dog on it," or the mild oath, " By lightning." 
The restraining influence of his mother's teachings oper- 
ated so powerfully that he has never uttered an oath in his 
life. At least his nearest friends assert this with so much 
emphasis and unanimity that I think the solitar)' exception 
already related must be fabulous. He says : " I always dis- 
liked to hear anybody swear except Rawlins." Old army 
comrades who remember the peculiarly vigorous and elo- 
quent anathemas of the chief of staff will understand the 
exception. 

In one respect had Grant been specially fortunate. Dur- 
ing all these years of poverty and struggle, his wife brought 
to him that utter devodon, sympathy, faith, and love of a 
sweet, true-hearted woman, which has buoyed up so many 
a sufferer weighed down by heavy burdens. Her tender- 
ness and fidelity were so warmly returned, that she looks 
back on their life in St. Louis as one of exceeding hap^ 
piness. 

They had now four little mouths to feed ; so, in the 
sprino- of i860. Grant paid a visit to his father, at Coving- 
ton, Kentucky, to discuss his future. For six years Jesse 
had left the chief conduct of his Galena business in the 
hands of Simpson and Orvil, though he still owned it, and 
the name of the house stood "J. R. Grant." To the 
brothers the father referred the case of Ulysses. They 
offered him a place in the store at an annual salary of six 
hundred dollars for the present. If he liked and proved 
useful, Jesse intended to give him an interest, but not so 
large a one as to his brothers, who had assisted in building 
up the concern. 

The father had already gradfied his ambition for a com- 
petency. Six years later he found himself worth one hun- 
dred thousand dollars, and determined to make over his 
property to his children. Ulysses desired none of it, in- 
sisting that he had done nothing toward accumuladng it, 
and that the government had provided amply for him. So 
Jesse only gave one thousand dollars each to the children 



126 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

of Ulysses, to aid In educating them, and divided the re- 
mainder between his other surviving sons and daughters. 

In March, i860, Ulysses removed to Galena, Illinois, on 
the Galena river, four miles above its junction with the Mis- 
sissippi. The litde city of six or seven thousand people 
has a curious Swiss look. The river cuts it in twain, and 
the narrow and crowded main street threads the valley, 
while on the north side a bluff rises like a roof for two 
hundred feet. 

Upon the summit, and in terraces along the side, perch 
most of the residences. One ascends to them by wooden 
steps, leaving the top of the tallest spire far below. 

Galena, in the midst of the richest lead region in the 
world, underlying half a dozen coundes of Illinois, Iowa, 
and Wisconsin, had fourteen thousand inhabitants a quarter 
of a century ago. Then all the lead was brought to the 
city to be shipped ; people and w^agons crowded the narrow 
streets, and a Tower of Babel went up in the form of an 
enormous brick hotel, containing two hundred rooms. Its 
owners, who named it the De Soto House, builded rasher 
than they knew. If the ghostly form of De Soto stalks 
through its deserted halls, they must remind him of the pri- 
meval quiet which he found on reaching the Mississippi. 
The intrusive railway, giving to half a dozen little stations 
equal facilities for shipping lead, has cut down the mag- 
nificent expectations of Galena, and left her far behind 
Dubuque, Iowa, nineteen miles distant, and on the other 
side of the Mississippi. 

Near Galena, In early days, WInfield Scott, Jefferson 
Davis, Albert Sidney Johnston, David E. Twiggs, and other 
well-known army officers, were frequently stationed. E. D. 
Baker, the Oregon senator, who was killed at the head of 
his regiment at Ball's Bkiff in 1861, and William H. 
Hooper, Congressional delei^ate from Utah, were both old 
• residents of the vicinity. At Hazel Green, Wisconsin, ten 
miles north, sleeps James G. Perclval, the modest and 
lovable poet, the accomplished linguist and savant. 

Grant's father-in-law, Colonel Dent, was likewise familiar 
with Galena in early days, and erected one of the very first 




Z'::^^-- 



p,jpi9^^^,^ 



RESIDENCt IN I860. 



CAPTAIN GRANT'S RESIDENCE AND HIS FATHER'S 
STORE IN GALENA, ILL. 



(i*7) 



128 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

buildings. He traded widi the miners, supplied the military 
posts above with provisions, and ascended to the Falls of 
St. Anthony on the tirst steamer which ever ventured up to 
that point. Indian warriors, squaws, papooses, and dogs, 
on the approach of the boat, fled to the nearest American 
fort, and reported that an evil spirit, belching fire and 
smoke, was coming to destroy them. 

Grant took a litde dwelling on the top of a picturesque 
bluff, and he had to climb stairs two hundred feet high 
every time he went home from the store. The leather- 
house had a capital of one hundred thousand dollars, and 
its annual business reached the same amount. It dealt in 
shoe-fmdinLis, saddlery, hardware, French calf, fancy linings, 
and morocco, all bought in the East, and in domesdc 
leather tanned in the chestnut-oak woods of Ohio, from 
hides purchased in Galena. 

The captain cheerfully began his new duties. He wore 
a rough working dress and his favorite slouched hat, and 
smoked a clay^ pipe incessandy. He was temperate^ in 
everything else, for he had totally abstained from drink 
for several years. He was courteous and popular with all 
who met him on business, but never sought acquaintances. 
He was a very poor salesman, could not chaffer, and did not 
always know die price of an arUcle. So, wdienever a diffi- 
cult or an important customer was to be dealt w^ith, Orvil, 
Simpson, or one of the clerks took him in charge. 

He weiglied leather for filling orders, and bought hides, 
which he frequendy unloaded and carried into the store on 
his shoulders. One day Rowley, clerk of the Circuit 
Court, sent down for leather to cover a desk in liis office. 
The captain walked up to the court-house with the leather 
on his back, measured it, cut it, and tacked it on. A year 
and a half later. Grant was a major-general in the field, and 
Rowley a captain c)n his staff. 

During one of the periodic depressions of western cur- 
rency, the house bouglu pork and shipped it to New York 
to pay Fast(!rn bills, and save the enormous price of ex- 
change. One day some firmers, who had brought a load 
of i)ork, asked for gold instead of notes, to pay their taxes. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 29 

The clerk offered It at a rate which Grant thought exorbl 
tant, so he suggested that they go to the bank and learn 
the current premium. The result was that they saved 
twelve dollars. 

In truth, Grant felt out of place. The life was distaste- 
ful to him. Jesse spent a few weeks In Galena every year, 
but the business was mainly in the hands of Orvil, thirteen 
years the younger, a fact which could not have been pleas- 
ant to the elder brother. An old neighbor remarks : 

"Though very unnotlceaSle he attended to business 
faithfully and talked a great deal, but always about places 
that he had seen — never of what he had read. His con- 
versation was entertaining, but fact, and not fancy, Inter- 
ested him." 

"I first encountered him," says another, "coming down 
the hill toward the store with Orvil. He wore' a blue 
overcoat and old slouched hat, and looked like a private 
soldier. He had not more than three Intimates In the 
whole town." 

The bread and butter question was still a serious one. 
The rent of the dwelling was only one hundred and 
twenty-five dollars per annum. Much of the time Mrs. 
Grant had no servant, but took the whole care of her house- 
and the four children. Her husband had no extravagant 
habits ; though not naturally frugal, he was now so perforce. 
Still, the six hundred dollars a year proved utterly Inade- 
quate to support him. It was raised to eight hundred, but 
even upon this he was unable to live. The want of money 
hampered him, and he went to the war considerably In debt, 
but paid every dollar from his earliest earnings In the army. 
The patriotic ardor of Grant and all the loyal West was 
Inflamed In 1861, by the attacks made by the Confederates 
upon the arsenals and forts of the United States, and when 
Beauregard opened fire upon Fort Sumter on. the nth 
of April, 1 861, he concluded to tender his services, to the 
governor of Illinois. 

Four days afterward President Lincoln issued his call 
for seventy-five thousand three months' men ; fouir days 
later a company was enrolled at Galena,, and Grant being 
9 



130 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

the only man In the town who knew anything whatever of 
mlHtary matters, the duty of drilHng this company was 
naturally assigned to him ; still four days later, he went 
with it to Springfield, and reported to the governor for 
service. 

From Springfield he addressed a letter to the adjutant- 
general of the army, offering his services to the govern- 
ment for whatever duty it might be thought his past ex- 
perience would fit him, but to this letter he received no 
reply. About this time he visited his father at Covington. 
Ky., and while there he took occasion to go twice to Cin- 
cinnati, where General McClellan, then commanding the 
Ohio militia, had established his head-quarters, hoping that 
his past acquaintance with that general might secure for 
him an offer of employment. But in this, too, he was disap- 
pointed. 

Finally, about the first of May, Governor Yates, after 
asking him if he could tell how many men and officers 
there were in a company and in a regiment — which was 
more than his excellency yet knew — took Grant into his 
office as clerk and military adviser to himself and his 
adjutant-general. The latter had no printed forms for 
transacting the Important business of his office. Grant 
ruled sheets of paper until blanks could be printed, sys- 
tematized the whole business, and turned it off with the 
greatest ease. He consulted no books, having at his finger- 
ends all needed Information ; yet he did his work so unde- 
monstratively that neither governor nor adjutant-general 
was particularly impressed with his capacity. 

The office work once reduced to mere clerical routine, 
Grant assumed more Important duties. On the 4th of 
May he was put In command of Camp Yates, during the 
temporary absence of Captain Pope. Next he mustered 
in several new regiments, Including the Twenty-first, at 
Mattoon. He was called "captain," but he had neither 
uniform nor commission. 

The Vicksburg Sun, of May 13th, commented with 
glee upon a report of "one Captain U. S. Grant," to the 
governor, that Illinois boasted just nine hundred muskets, 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. I3I 

of which only sixty were in serviceable condition. It drew 
a ludicrous picture of the Prairie State and her ex-captain, 
with three-score rusty guns, coming to conquer the South. 
They learned something more in Vicksburg, by and by, of 
"one Captain U. S. Grant" and of Illinois soldiers. 

Toward the close of May he went home on a brief visit. 
On his way back to Springfield a friend asked : 

"Why don't you put in for one of these Illinois regi- 
ments ? As things are going, I don't know why you are 
not as much entitled to a colonelcy as any one." 

"To tell you the truth," replied Grant, after a moment's 
hesitation, " I would rather like a regiment, yet there are 
few 77ten ideally competent to command a thousand soldiers, and 
I doubt whether I am one of them!' 

By the loth of June all the regiments had been mustered 
in, and Grant went on a visit to his father, in Covington. 
His old friend McClellan was in command at Cincinnati, 
just across the river, and Grant called upon him twice. 
He did not propose to ask for an appointment, but thought 
that McClellan might invite him to come on his staff For- 
tunately, he did not find that general at his office on either 
occasion. 

Meanwhile there was trouble in the Twenty-first Illinois 
infantry, at Camp Yates. Colonel Goode, its commander, 
a large fine-looking man, a Kentuckian by birth, had been 
in the Mexican war, the Lopez Expedition against Cuba, 
and the Kansas border troubles. At the outbreak of the 
rebellion he was city clerk at Decatur, Illinois. He raised 
a company, and finally rose to the colonelcy of the Twenty- 
first. But what experience ever taught one, not born to 
it, to control men ? 

The troops became insubordinate ; many deserted ; and 
it became evident that the colonel was utterly incompetent. 
The governor, therefore, refused to commission him,* and 
about this time, meeting a book-keeper from the Galena 
store, asked : 

* Goode afterward sought to re-enter the regiment as a private, but was refused. He 
then became a Peace Democrat, and in 1868 met his death in a personal rencounter in 
Missouri. 



132 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

"What kind of a man is this Captain Grant? Though 
anxious to serve, he seems reluctant to take any high posi- 
tion. He even dedined my offer to recommend him to 
Washington for a brigadier-generalship, saying he didn't 
want office till he had earned it. What does he want? " 

" The way to deal with him," replied the book-keeper, 
"is to ask him no questions, but simply order him to duty. 
He will obey prompdy." 

Thereupon the governor despatched to Grant: 

" You are this day appointed colonel of the Twenty-first 
Illinois Volunteers, and requested to take command at 
once." 

This was on Saturday. Before the telegram reached 
Covington Grant had started on his return. Spending 
Sunday with his old classmate, J. J. Reynolds, at Terre 
Haute, Indiana, he was again in Springfield on Monday 
morning, and immediately began the duties of his new 
position. Of his commission, dated on the i6th of June, 
Yates declares : 

" It was the most glorious day of my life when I 
signed it." 

Colonel Grant found his new regiment In the worst pos- 
sible condition. The men mostly without tents, without 
uniforms, and as rao^^fed as Falstaff's recruits, wore their 
oldest clothes, after the manner of volunteers about to get 
new suits from the government. They were chiefly farmers' 
sons, of fine physique — the best raw material for good sol- 
diers, but utterly demoralized by want of discipline. Gen- 
eral John E. Smith says of the colonel's first visit to his 
command : 

" I went with him to camp, and shall never forget the 
scene when his men first saw him. Grant was dressed In 
citizen's clothes, an old coat worn out at the elbows, and a 
badly damaged hat. His men, though ragged and bare- 
footed themselves, had formed a high estimate of what a 
colonel should be, and when Grant walked In among them, 
they began making fun of him. They cried In derision, 
'What a colonel!' 'D — n such a colonel,' and made all 
sorts of fun of him. And one of them, to show off to the 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 33 

Others, got behind his back and commenced sparring at 
him, and while he was doing this another gave him such a 
push that he hit Grant between the shoulders." 

The soldiers soon learned that their quiet commander 
was not to be trifled with. One of the first morning roll- 
calls was an hour late. Grant observing it, simply sent 
them back to their quarters. There being no morning re- 
port, no rations came in that day; so they begged, bor- 
rowed, and bought food wherever they could find it. At 
the first dress parade several officers appeared without 
coats. Said Grant, sharply: 

" This is a dress parade. Officers are expected to wear 
their clothes. Dismiss the men to quarters." 

He turned and walked away without another word. A 
few of these sharp penalties and admonitions brought men 
and officers to their duty. In ten days there was tolerably 
good discipline, and ultimately the regiment became one of 
the best in the service. Notwithstanding his severity, the 
men grew attached to him, as soldiers always do to officers 
who are just, self-controlled, and "know their business." 

Before taking the field, Grant paid another flying visit to 
Galena. He must have an outfit, and no gifts of swords, 
horses, or money, poured in during these days of obscurity. 
With genuine human nature, instead of applying to his kin- 
dred, he procured the indorsement of Collins, his father's 
old partner, to his note for three hundred dollars, and with 
the proceeds bought horse and uniform. 

One Sunday afternoon, during this visit, he rode over to 
Washburne's, in whose library the two talked for several 
hours, about the rebellion and the means necessary to crush 
it. Grant's intelliorence, self-abnegation, and clear-headed- 
ness were so palpable that they won for him a powerful and 
enthusiastic friendship, which was never to be shaken in 
dark days yet to come. 

The regiment had been mustered in for only thirty days, 
but it re-enlisted for the war. Soon after Missouri called 
for aid. Governor Yates said : 

*T would send another regiment, if I had transportation." 

"Order mine," replied Grant; "I will find transporta- 
tion." 



134 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Yates did order it to Mexico, in northern Missouri, and 
Grant marched his men across the country, as the shortest 
and best way to make soldiers of them. They started in 
high feather, a good deal more troublesome to their friends 
than they seemed likely ever to be to their enemies. But 
the colonel soon put a stop to depredations. The first 
night he had a number of men tied up by the thumbs, 
and in a few days they were as disciplined and orderly on 
the march as of late they had been in camp. 

In a week they reached their destination. Pope was in 
command of north Missouri. Grant, though a junior colo- 
nel, was placed in charge of a brigade. His men had 
nothing to do but guard railway trains and bridges, and 
occasionally make short marches in pursuit of the swarming 
bushwhackers. On one excursion, several soldiers obtained 
whiskey, and soon began to stagger. Grant immediately 
halted the regiment, went through the ranks, examined 
each canteen and emptied out liquor wherever he found it. 
He had the men tied behind baggage wagons till they grew 
sober, and sharply reprimanded the officers for permitting 
such a gross abuse. 

While in civil life he once said to a friend : 
" If a man wants promotion in the army, he should 
resiorn and take advantacre of the first war to oro in for 
promotion. He is morally sure of a higher position." 
Now, encountering Grant in the field, this friend asked: 
"Well, ^rc yo7i going in for promotion now?" 
" No ; I am nicely fixed at Galena. To tell you the truth, 
I would not go back to the regular army short of a colo- 
nelcy, and I know very well that I could not get that." 

Notwithstanding his love of discipline, his heart was ten- 
der and lenient. A colonel asked his counsel as to how he 
should deal with a boyish volunteer who had left an excel- 
lent home, but was now falling into bad company, gambling, 
and neglect of duty. Grant replied: 

"The army is a hard place. It will ruin a great many 
young men. Talk to him and try to teach him more seli- 
control. Do everything to counteract the evil infiuences 
of camp-life, but don't punish him, unless you find it abso- 
lutely necessary, for that brings a sense of degradation." 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 13^ 

The regimental chaplain was In the head-quarters mess. 
Shortly after he joined the regiment Grant said to him : 

" Chaplain, when I was at home, and ministers stopped 
at my house, I always invited them to ask a blessing at the 
table. I suppose it is quite as much needed here as there, 
and I shall be glad to have you do it whenever we sit down 
to a meal." 

In July began a special session of Congress. Illinois had 
thirty-six regiments in the field. President Lincoln sent a 
printed notice to each of her senators and representatives, 
requesting them to recommend four soldiers for brigadiers, 
in the desired order of rank. 

The delegation met at the parlor of Senator Trumbull, in 
Eicrhth street. Washburne, uro[-Inof that the northwest cor- 
ner of the State had sent many troops, and was entitled to 
a brigadier, placed Grant in nomination. Then the delega- 
tion voted for each candidate separately. Grant was the 
only one who received every vote, therefore he stood at 
the top of the list. Hurlbut, Prentiss, and McClernand fol- 
lowed In the order named. 

Nearly forty other appointments were made the same 
day, the 7th of August, but the commissions dated back 
to the 17th of May. Grant stood number seventeen 
on the list. Above him were Franklin, Sherman, Buell, 
Pope, Hooker, Kearny, and FItz John Porter. He knew 
nothing of his good fortune until one morning the chaplain 
brought him a morning paper from St. Louis, saying: 

" Colonel, I have some news here that will interest you." 

" What is It ? " 

" You are made a brigadier-general." 

Grant read the announcement and replied: 

*T had no suspicion of it. It never came from any re- 
quest of mine. It must be some of Washburne's work." 

Thus, after two months of command. Grant's connection 
wdth the Twenty-first regiment ended. An account of it 
from his own hand concludes: 

"We did make one march, however, from Salt River, Mo., 
to Florida, Mo., and return, in search of Tom Harris, who 
was reported in that neighborhood with the enemy. 



136 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

It was impossible to get nearer than a day's march of him. 
From Salt River the regiment went to Mexico, Mo., where 
it remained for two weeks, thence to Ironton, passing 
through St. Louis on the 7th of August, where I was 
assigned to duty as a brigadier-general, and turned over 
the command of the regiment to that gallant and Christian 
officer, Colonel Alexander, w^ho afterward yielded up his 
life while nobly leading it in the battle of Chickamauga.'' 

Early in August he was assigned to duty as a brigadier- 
general. His name having been suggested by the Hon. 
E. B. Washburne, and unanimously recommended by the 
Congressional delegation from Illinois, the President ap- 
pointed him to that rank to date from May 17th, 1861, one 
month anterior to his appointment of colonel by Governor 
Yates. He was immediately assigned to the command of 
the district of Southeastern Missouri, including the south- 
eastern part of the State from which it took its name, 
Southern Illinois, and all of the territory in Western Ken- 
tucky and Tennessee, then or afterwards under the control 
of the national forces. Simultaneously with this assign- 
ment he was ordered by telegraph to proceed to St. Louis 
and report in person at the head-quarters of the depart- 
ment. In order that no time should be lost, a special train 
was sent from St. Louis for him ; but when the General 
presented himself the same day at head-quarters as directed, 
they were so surrounded by sentinels, and hedged about 
with aids-de-camp in waiting, that he was delayed over 
twenty-four hours before he could reach the presence of 
General Fremont. Having received his instructions, on 
the Tst of September, he went at once to Cairo, where he 
established his head-quarters, and assumed the command 
to which he had been assigned. 

At this time the Confederates under Polk held Colum- 
bus, a strong point commanding the river twenty miles 
below Cairo, and in connection with Bragg, at Bowling 
Green, were making vigorous efforts to provoke Kentucky 
into an abandonment of her assumed neutrality. They 
had also a force operating in Southeastern Missouri, under 
Thompson ; they controlled the Mississippi river through- 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 37 

out its length, below the mouth of the Ohio ; held the Ten- 
nessee and the Cumberland, and seemed to be looking to 
the control of the Ohio, by the seizure of Paducah and 
other strong points on the western border of Kentucky. 
Perceiving the true condition of affairs almost at a glance, 
and properly appreciating the strategic importance of 
Paducah, situated at the confluence of the Tennessee and 
Ohio rivers. Grant determined at once to forestall the 
movement which Polk had already begun toward that 
point; and on the 5th of September he signified his inten- 
tions to Fremont and the Legislature of Kentucky. On 
the night of the same day, having received no counter- 
manding order from Fremont, and having made an 
arrangement with Commodore Foote for a convoy of two 
gunboats, he set out with two regiments of infantry and 
one battery of field artillery, embarked upon steam trans- 
ports. An accident to one of the transports caused a 
slight detention to his flotilla. Nevertheless, it arrived at 
Paducah by half-past eight o'clock the next day. A small 
force of the Confederate army, under General Tilghman, 
had reached there before the national troops, but fled upon 
their approach, leaving Grant to take quiet possession of 
the town, and the stores already gathered there. Having 
disembarked the troops and occupied the telegraph of^ce, 
railroad depot, and marine hospital, he issued a proclama- 
tion, saying diat he had nothing to do with opinions, and 
would deal only with armed rebellion, Its aiders and abet- 
tors. The same day he returned to Cairo, where he found 
permission from Fremont to take Paducah, If he thought 
himself strong enough. But, In the meandme, Fremont 
had sent him, by telegraph, a severe reprimand for corre- 
sponding with the Kentucky State authorities In regard to 
his contemplated movement, and informed him that Gen- 
eral C. F. Smith had been assigned to the command of 
Paducah, with orders to report direcdy to Fremont's head- 
quarters. As a matter of course Grant's promptitude was an 
exasperating blow to the disunlonists in Kentucky, and was 
severely denounced by the authorities there as a flagrant 
vioiatlon of the neutrality declared by a sovereign State. 



138 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Its effect was to give the national forces firm control of the 
Ohio river, as well as of the lower Tennessee and Cum- 
berland. At the same time it served to unmask the real 
intention of the Confederate leaders, while it strenorthened 
the hands of the Union men in the Legislature sufficiently 
to enable them to carry resolutions favoring the Union 
cause, thus putdng an end forever to the ficdon of Ken- 
tucky neutrality. During the next ten weeks Grant was 
prohibited from engaging in important operations, and by 
the order of Fremont was kept in a stricdy defensive 
attitude. 

The foresight and promptitude exhibited by Grant In 
making himself master of Paducah were characterisdc of 
the man. The same qualities were destined to secure him 
victory on many a battle-field, and to carry him afterwardr> 
to die highest position In the land. In obedience to in- 
structions from General Fremont to make some co-opera- 
dve movements, Grant, who had already gready strength- 
ened Paducah by erecting fortifications, had thrown a 
pontoon-bridge across the Ohio, half a mile below^ the 
town, had seized and occupied Smith Bend, and had thus 
cut the Confederates off from two important sources of 
supply, resolved to threaten Columbus by attacking Bel- 
mont, a small village and landing-place on the Missouri 
side of the river and direcdy opposite Columbus. He had 
learned that the Confederate General Price was receiving 
reinforcements from Polk; and he hoped that, by making 
himself master of Belmont, he w^ould break up the connec- 
tion between them. Having arranged some side move- 
ments for the purpose of distracdng the attendon of Polk, 
Grant, with about three thousand troops, in four steam 
transports, and having for convoy the two wooden gun- 
boats Tyler and Eexington, sailed down the Mississippi 
from Cairo on tlie evening of November 6th. At Island 
No. I, eleven miles above Columbus, they halted for the 
night. There Grant learned that Polk was sendingr troops 
across to cut off Oglesby, w^hom, in compliance with Fre- 
mont's request, he had previously sent off to assist Carlin 
in driving Thompson into Arkansas. At an early hour on 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 39 

the following morning he landed his forces at Hunter's 
Point, on the Missouri side of the river, and about three 
miles above Belmont. A battalion was left to guard the 
transports. The remainder advanced and formed in line 
about two miles above the village. The gunboats mean- 
while moved down and opened fire on the Confederate 
batteries on the Iron Banks. The centre of the attackinor 
column was under Colonel Fouke, the right under Colonel 
Buford, the left under Colonel Logan. It was evident that 
Polk had been taken by surprise. General Smith, whom 
Grant had sent ahead the day before, was threatening him 
at Mayfield, in his rear, and he had been making his 
preparations to resist an attack in that direction. Dollins 
and Delano's cavalry were ordered forward to scour the 
woods. It was not long before they encountered the 
enemy, in considerable force. About a mile and a half 
from the enemy's camp the line of battle was formed. 
Behind an abatis of felled trees which surrounded the 
camp lay the Thirteenth Arkansas and Ninth Tennessee. 
There was also opposite Grant's left a battery of seven 
guns, commanded by Colonel Beltzhoover. This battery 
was protected by Colonel Wright's Tennessee regiment. 
In the face of a destructive fire, on the national forces 
rushed. Meanwhile the batteries of Columbus had shifted 
the heavy fire from the gunboats to the advancing line. 
The guns, however, were not in range, and as yet they 
did no harm. Nothing daunted. Grant pressed forward 
his men. In spite of the galling fire, onward they moved, 
charging over the fallen timber, capturing the battery and 
driving the enemy back across the low ground towards the 
river, and compelling some of them to take to their boats. 
In a brief space of time the heavy guns at Columbus were 
got into range, and the deadly bullets crashed through the 
woods, over and among the advancing and triumphant 
Federals. A second and a third time was the retreating 
foe overtaken ; and although reinforced and disposed to 
resist to the last, they were ultimately routed, some of 
them seekine shelter behind buildings near the river, some 
m the woods above the camp, and others under cover of 



I40 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



the batteries at Columbus. It was a complete victory. 
The national troops gave themselves up to the wildest 
excitement. As yet discipline in the army w^as loose. In 
the face of Polk's batteries, three cheers were given for the 
Union ; and while some of the soldiers were delivering 
stump speeches, others were rifling the baggage or supply- 
ino- themselves with the arms which the discomfited Con- 
federates had thrown down in their flight. 

Although the victory was complete, the place w-as un- 
tenable, commanded as it was by the heavy guns of Col- 
umbus. While these were brought to bear upon the 
national troops in the midst of their wild abandonment, 
Polk ordered General Cheatham to cross the river above 
with his regiments, for the purpose of cutting Grant off 
from his flodlla. At the same time he himself crossed 
with two regiments to take part in the pursuit. Five 
thousand fresh men were thus at hand to hinder or harass 
the retreat. Grant, however, was equal to the situation. 
Getting his men in order, he pressed forward to the land- 
ing-place. While compelled to cut his way through the 
ranks of the enemy, he was exposed to a raking fire from 
the Confederate batteries on the Iron Banks. The fight- 
ing was terrific. After severe suffering the landing-place 
was reached; and under cover of the gunboats, which had 
come up, and which kept the enemy at bay, the embarka- 
tion was completed. By five o'clock in tile afternoon, the 
flotilla, with the entire force on board, was on its way back 
to Cairo. Grant carried with him, in addition to all his 
own men, two of Beltzhoover's heavy guns. The esti- 
mated national loss was 480 men in killed, w^ounded and 
missing. That of the enemy was 642. 

This w^as the first batde of any magnitude in that theatre 
of operations, and is jusdy claimed by Grant as a substan- 
tial and important victory. Officers and men had behaved 
with great gallantry. Colonels Logan, Lauman, Dougherty, 
and Fouke, and General IMcClernand led their men \vith 
conspicuous bravery throughout the action, while Grant 
himself exhibited his usual coolness and determination. In 
the heat of the action his horse was killed under him. After 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. I4I 

the larger part of his command had reached the transports, 
he went out again, accompanied by an aid-de-camp, for the 
purpose of withdrawing the battahon that had been left to 
cover the landing, and such small parties as had not yet got 
in, but had gone only a few rods when he found himself in 
front of the entire Confederate line not sixty paces distant. 
Being dressed in a soldier's blouse, the Confederates took 
no particular notice of him. He saw that all his stragglers 
had been picked up or cut off, and therefore turned to ride 
towards the boat, but as the Confederates continued to ad- 
vance rapidly in the same direction, he was compelled to 
put his horse to his best speed, and succeeded in reaching 
the boat just as she was pushing off. The Confederates, 
now under Polk in person, reached the shore a few minutes 
afterwards, and opened a severe musketry fire on the trans- 
ports, but as they fired low, little or no damage was done. 
The gunboats replied with canister and grape and drove 
them back in confusion. 

The Confederates claimed this as a great victory, but noth- 
ing is more certain than that Grant accomplished his pur- 
pose, captured and burnt the Confederate camps, took their 
artillery and compelled Pillow's command of five regiments 
to seek safety under cover of the river bank. After the 
Confederate force had been doubled by two additional brig- 
ades, and had succeeded .in surrounding Grant, the latter 
again broke the Confederate lines and forced his way to the 
transports, inflicting almost twice as much loss upon the 
enemy as he had received. Oglesby's movement was en- 
tirely protected, and the Confederates in all that region 
were thrown upon the defensive, lest their strong places 
should be wrested from them. The national troops engaged 
in the batde of Belmont had no doubt whatever that they 
had gained a substantial victory, and the memory of their 
deeds eave them a confidence and steadiness in action 
which transformed them at once into veterans. 

The folio w^ing is from a private letter from General 
Grant to his father, written on the night of the 8th: 

" Day before yesterday I left Cairo with about three 
thousand men in five steamers, convoyed by two gunboats, 



•J 4 2 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

and proceeded down the river to within about twelve miles 
of Columbus. The next morning the boats were dropped 
down just out of range of the enemy's batteries, and the 
troops debarked. During this operation our gunboats 
exercised the Confederates by throwing shells into tlieir 
camps and batteries. When all ready, we proceeded about 
one mile toward Belmont, opposite Columbus, when I 
formed the troops into line, and ordered two companies 
from each regiment to deploy as skirmishers, and push on 
through the woods and discover the position of the enemy. 
They had gone but a little way when they were fired upon, 
and die ball may be said to have fairly opened. 

'' The whole command, with the exception of a small 
reserve, w^as then deployed In like manner and ordered 
forward. The order was obeyed wath great alacrity, the 
men all showing great courage. I can say with great grat- 
ification that every colonel, w^Ithout a single excepdon, set 
an example to. their commands tha,t Inspired a confidence 
that wllh always Insure vict6ry^when''t?liere Is the sllgjitest 
possibility of gaining one. ^ 

" From here we fough^ ouflv^ay¥rQm tree t© tr€fe'll:h«^ugh 
the woods to Belmont, about two and a half miles, the 
enemy contesting every foot of ground. Here the enemy 
had strengthened their posiuon by felling the trees for two 
or three hundred yards and sharpening their limbs, making 
a sort of abatis. Our men charged through, making the 
victory complete, giving us possession of their camp and 
garrison equipage, artillery, and everything else. 

" We got a great many prisoners. The majority, how- 
ever, succeeded in getting aboard their steamers and push- 
ing across the river. We burned everything possible and 
started back, having accomplished all that we went for, and 
even more. Belmont Is entirely covered by the batteries 
from Columbus, and Is worth nothing as a military posidon — 
cannot be held without Columbus. 

" The object of the expedition was to prevent the enemy 
from sending a force Into Missouri to cut off troops I had 
sent there for a special purpose, and to prevent reinforc- 
ing Price. 



I 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 43 

" Besides being well fortified at Columbus, their number 
far exceeded ours, and it would have been folly to have 
attacked them. We found the Confederates well armed 
and brave. On our return, stragglers, that had been left 
in our rear (now front), fired into us, and more recrossed 
the river and gave us battle for a full mile, and afterward 
at the boats when we were embarking. 

"There was no hasty retreating or running away. Tak- 
ing into account the object of the expedition, the victory 
was complete. It has given us confidence in the officers 
and men of this command, that will enable us to lead them 
in any future engagement without fear of the result. Gen- 
eral McClernand (who, by the way, acted with great cool- 
ness and courage throughout, and proved that he is a 
soldier as well as a statesman) and myself each had our 
horses shot under us. Most of the field-officers met with 
the same loss, beside nearly one-third of them being them- 
selves killed or wounded. As near as I can ascertain, our 
loss/was about two hundred and fifty killed and wounded." 

General McClernand, in his official report of this batde, 
after spea4^ing of the hotness of the engagement, and nar- 
/ row escapes of some of his officers, makes use of the follow- 
ing words : 

" Here the projectiles from the enemy's heavy guns at 
Columbus, and their artillery at Belmont, crashed through 
the woods over and among us. . . .. And here, too, many 
of our officers were killed or wounded ; nor shall I omit to 
add, that this gallant conduct was stimulated by your 
(Grant's) presence, and Insf)ired by your example. Here 
your horse was killed under you." 

After the United States troops had returned to their base 
of operations at Cairo, General Grant Issued the following 
order: 

Head-quarters, District of Southeast Missouri, 
Cairo, November '^th, 1861. 
The general commanding this military district returns his thanks to 
the troops mider his command at the battle of Belmont on yesterday. 

It has been his fortune to have been in all the battles fought in Mexico 
by General Scott and Taylor, save Buena Vista, and he never saw one 
more hotly contested, or where troops behaved with more gallantry. 



144 L^^^ ^^ ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Such courage will insure victory wherever our flag may be borne and 
protected by such a class of men. 

To the brave men who fell, the sympathy of the country is due, and 
will be manifested in a manner unmistakable. 

U. S. Grant, B7'igadier-Ge7ieral cojiunanding. 

But, while General Grant was engaged In congratulating 
those who had returned safe, he was not unmindful of the 
sufferers who had fallen wounded Into the hands of the 
enemy. Knowing the Incomplete state of the medical and 
surgical departments of the Confederate army opposed to 
him, he addressed the following despatch to the Confeder 
ate Q-eneral under a flacr of truce : 

Head-quarters, District of Southeast Missouri, 
Cairo, November d>th, 1861. 
General commanding forces, Columbus, Ky. 

Sir : — In the skirmish of yesterday, in which both parties behaved 
with so much gallantry, many unfortunate men were left upon the field 
of battle, whom it was impossible to provide for. I now send, in the 
interest of humanity, to have these unfortunates collected and medical 
attendance secured them. Major Webster, Chief of Engineers, District 
Southeast Missouri, goes bearer of this, and will express to you my views 
upon the course that should be pursued under the circumstances, such as 
those of yesterday. 

I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

U. S. Gi^ANT, Brigadier- General commanding. 

To this communication the commander of the Confederate 
post returned the following answer: 

Head-quarters, First Division, Western Department, 
Columbus, Ky., November %th, 1861. 
Brigadier-General U. S. Grant, U. S. A. 

I have received your note in regard to your wounded and killed on the 
battle-field, after yesterday's engagement. The lateness of the hour at 
which my troops returned to the principal scene of action prevented my 
bestowing the care upon the wounded which I desired. 

Such attentions as were practicable were shown them, and measures 
were taken at an early hour this morning to have them all brought into 
my hospitals. Provision was also made for taking care of your dead. 
The permission you desire under your flag of truce to aid in attention to 
your wounded is granted with i)leasure, under such restrictions as the 
exigencies of our service may require. In your note you say nothing of 
an exchange of prisoners, though you send me a private message as to your 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 45 

willingness to release certain wounded men, and some invalids taken 
from our list of sick in camps, and expect, in return, a corresponding 
number of your wounded prisoners. My own feelings would prompt 
me to waive again the unimportant affectation of declining to recognize 
these States as belligerents, in the interests of humanity ; but my gov- 
ernment requires all prisoners to be placed at the disposal of the Secre- 
tary of War. I have despatched him to know if the case of the severely 
wounded held by me will form an exception. 

I have the honor to be, your obedient servant, 

L. Polk, Major- Genera/ C. S. A. 

After General Halleck had assumed the command of the 
Department of the Missouri, he began to organize the same 
into proper miHtary districts, so as to allow each district 
commander to have full control of the section of country 
embraced within his lines. 

On the 20th of December, 1861, General Halleck, appre- 
ciating the military ability of General Grant, issued an 
order defining what should constitute the District of Cairo, 
and extending the command until it became one of the 
largest divisions in the country. He then appointed General 
Grant to be chief commander of the same. In accordance 
with that appointment. General Grant assumed the com- 
mand of the new district on December 21st, 1S61, and an- 
nounced the same in the following order: 

Head-quarters, District of Cairo, 
Cairo, December 21st, 1S61. 
[General Order No. 22.] 

In pursuance of Special Order No. 78, from Head-quarters, Department 
of the Missouri, the name of this Military District will be known as the 
''District of Cairo," and will include all the southern part of Illinois, 
that part of Kentucky west of the Cumberland river, and the southern 
counties of Missouri, south of Cape Girardeau. 

The force at Shawneetown will be under the immediate command of 
Colonel T. H. Cavanaugh, Sixth Illinois cavalry, who will consolidate 
the reports of his command weekly, and forward to these head- quarters. 

All troops that are, or may be, stationed along the banks of the Ohio, 
on both sides of the river, east of Caledonia, and to the mouth of the 
Cumberland, will be included in the command, having head-quarters at 
Paducah, Ky. 

Brigadier-General E. A. Paine is assigned to the command of the 
forces at Bird's Point, Missouri. 

All supplies of ordnance, quartermaster and commissary stores, will 
10 



146 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

be obtained through the chiefs of each of these departments, at district 
head-quarters, where not otherwise provided for. 

For the information of that portion of this command, newly attached, 
the following list of Staff Officers is published : 

Captain John A. Rawlins, Assistant Adjutant-General. 

Captain Clark B. Lagow, Aide-de-Camp. 

Captain William S. Hillyer, Aide-de-Camp. 

Major John Riggin, Jr., Volunteer Aide-de-Camp. 

Captain R. B. Hatch, Assistant Quartermaster U. S. Volunteers, 
Chief Quartermaster. 

Captain W. W. Leland, A. C. S. U. S. Volunteers, Chief Com- 
missary. 

Captain W. F. Brinck, Ordnance Officer. 

Surgeon James Simons, U. S. A., Medical Director. 

Assistant Surgeon J. P. Taggart, U. S. A., Medical Purveyor. 

Major L N. Cook, Pay-Master. 

Colonel J. D. Webster, Chief of Staff, and Chief of Engineers. 
By order, U. S. Grant, Brigadier- General commanding. 

General Grant at once began organizing, under his per- 
sonal supervision, the new troops added to his command, 
and as soon as deemed fit for such service, they were sent 
to the various posts belonging to the district, including 
Fort Jefferson and Paducah, In Kentucky. By this plan 
of operation General Grant had all his troops well In hand, 
and yet so distributed that It was a matter of great diffi- 
culty, If not an actual impossibility, for the enemy to learn 
his streno^th. 

On the loth of January, the forces under the Immediate 
command of General McClernand left Cairo In transports, 
and disembarked at Fort Jefierson. The transports were 
protected by two gunboats, which were next ordered to 
lie off the fort. The Confederates, with three armed vessels, 
attacked these gunboats the next morning; but, after a 
brisk engagement, had to beat a retreat — the Union vessels 
chasing them until they took refuge under the guns of 
Columbus. 

As picket-shooting had existed to a fearful extent In the 
vicinity of Cairo, General Grant, on the nth of January, 
issued an order, as follows : 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 47 

Head-quarters, Ca\v.o y January nth, 1862. 
Brigadier-General Paine, Bird's Point. 

I understand that four of our pickets were shot this morning. If this 
is so, and appearances indicate that the assassins were citizens, not 
regularly organized in the rebel army, the whole country should be 
cleared out for six miles around, and word given that all citizens, mak- 
ing their appearance within those limits, are liable to be shot. 

To execute this, patrols should be sent out in all directions, and bring 
into camp, at Bird's Point, all citizens, together with their subsistence, 
and require them to remain, under penalty of death and destruction of 
their property, until properly relieved. 

Let no harm befall these people, if tliey quietly submit ; but bring 
them in and place them in camp below the breastwork, and have them 
properly guarded. 

The intention, is not to make political prisoners of these people, but to cut 
off a dangerous class of spies. 

This applies to all classes and conditions, age and sex! If, however, 
women and children prefer other protection than we can afford them, 
they may be allowed to retire beyond the limits indicated — not to return 
until authorized. 

By order of U. S. Grant, Brigadier- General coi?inianditig. 

As General Grant states in the above order, it was ne- 
cessary to keep spies away from his vicinity, as he was then 
about to start on a perilous expedition. He had already 
divided his forces into three columns — under Generals 
Paine, McClernand and C. F. Smith — General Grant com- 
manding the whole expedition in person. 

Before starting on this adventure General Grant issued 
the foilovling order to his troops : 

Head-quarters, District of Cairo, 
Cairo, January iT,th, 1862. 
[General Order No. 3.] 

During the absence of the expedition, now starting upon soil occupied 
almost solely by the rebel army, and when it is a fair inference that 
every stranger met is an enemy, the following orders will be observed : 

Troops, on marching, will be kept in the ranks ; company officers being 
held strictly accountable for all stragglers from their companies. No 
firing will be allowed in camp or on the march not strictly required in 
the performance of duty. While in camp no privilege will be granted to 
officers or soldiers to leave their regimental grounds, and all violations of 
this order must be promptly and summarily punished. 

Disgrace having been brought upon our brave fellows by the bad con- 
duct of some of their members, showing on all occasions, when marching 
through territory occupied by sympathizers of the enemy, a total disregard 



148 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

of the rights of citizens, and being guilty of wanton destruction of pri- 
vate property, the general commanding desi?'es and intends to enfoi'ce a 
change in this respect. 

The interpreting of confiscation acts by troops themselves has a de- 
moralizing effect — weakens them in exact proportions to the demoraliza- 
tion, and makes open and armed enemies of many who, from opposite 
treatment, would become friends, or, at most, non-combatants. 

It is ordered, therefore, that the severest punishment be inflicted upon 
every soldier who is guilty of taking, or destroying, private property ; 
and any commissioned officer, guilty of like conduct, or of countenancing 
it, shall be deprived of his sword and expelled from the camp, not to be 
permitted to return. 

On the march cavalry advance guards will be thrown out, also flank 
guards of cavalry or infantry, when practicable. A rear-guard of infantry 
will be required to see that no teams, baggage, or disabled soldiers are 
left behind. It will be the duty of company commanders to see that 
rolls of their company are called immediately upon going into camp each 
day, and every member accounted for. 

By order, U. S. Grant, Brigadier- General co^nmanding. 

On the morning of Tuesday, January 14th, 1862, General 
McClernand's column moved forward from Fort Jefferson, 
and the columns under Generals Paine and Smith, at Padu- 
cah, commenced similar movements. The three columns 
combined made a force of nineteen regiments of infantry, 
four regiments of volunteer cavalry, two companies of reg- 
ular cavalry, and seven batteries of artillery.^ 

At the time this expedition commenced Its march the 
Mississippi river was nearly filled with floating •ice, thus 
making the transportation of troops a serious difficulty. 
Demonstrations were made by General McClernand's 
column, as If with the Intention of attacking Columbus in 
the rear, by way of Blandvllle, Kentucky, w^hlle the real 
object was to concentrate with the troops marching from 
Paducah, Kentucky. The feint proved successful, and a 
great alarm was manifested by the Confederate forces In 
Columbus. 

As General McClernand's column advanced, It w^as at 
intervals joined by a regiment from the other columns, and, 
on the night of January 15th, his force encamped in line of 
batde ten miles to the rear of Columbus, threatening that 
post by two roads. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 149 

Here General Grant, who had been with the column 
from Paducah, came up with this part of the expedition, 
and personally superintended the disposition of the troops. 

The first division was next morning marched to Milburn, 
apparendy en route for Mayfield ; but instead of following 
that path, the troops, after passing through Milburn, turned 
northward, so as to communicate with the force from 
Paducah; and, on the i/di, were within eight miles of 
Lovelaceville. They then turned westward, and, on the 
nights of the i8di and 19th, encamped about a mile from 
Blandville. On January 20th the column returned to Fort 
Jefferson. During the interval between the 14th and 20th 
of January, the infantry of this column marched over 
seventy-five miles, and the cavalry about one hundred and 
forty miles, over icy and miry roads, and during a most 
inclement season. This march was a very heavy one for 
troops who had never before been in the field. The re- 
connoissance developed the fact that the Confederate army 
was not in large force west of the Paducah and Mayfield 
railroad, except, perhaps, in the Confederate works at 
Columbus, and led to the discovery of valuable side-roads, 
not laid down in any map of that dme. It also showed 
that Columbus was far from being as strong as was sup- 
posed, and that it could be attacked in the rear by several 
different roads, along which troops could be moved. 

As soon as General Grant had communicated with 
General McClernand, at his encampment, on the night of 
the 15th, and had received his report, he at once discovered 
the mere shell of Confederate defence which held that part 
of the State of Kentucky, and allowing General McCler- 
nand's column to keep up the appearance of an advance, 
he withdrew the other two columns to Cairo. He had, in 
fact, accomplished and ascertained all that he had desired 
when he first moved. 

During the fall and winter of 1861 several gunboats had 
been ordered to be constructed on the Mississippi river, 
above Cairo, and by this time the majority of them were 
completed. In order to obtain sailors to man these gun- 
boats, General Grant issued the following important order: 



J t-o LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Head -QUARTERS, Districi' of Cairo, 
Cairo, January 20th, 1862. 
Circular. 

Commanders ot regiments will report to these head-quarters, without 
delay, the number of river and seafaring men of their respective com- 
mands, who are willing to be transferred from tlie military to the gun- 
boat service. Seeing the importance of fitting out our gunboats as 
speedily as possible, it is hoped there will be no delay or objections 
raised by company or regimental commanders in responding to this call. 
Men thus volunteering will be discharged at the end of one year, or at 
the end of the war, should it terminate sooner. 

By order, U. S. Grant, Brigadier- Gene7-al coinina7iding. 

A few days afterwards, General McClernand's forces 
were withdrawn from Kentucky, and again rendezvoused 
at Cairo, the commander being placed in temporary charge 
of the district during the necessary absence of General 
Grant. 

A few days soon developed the whole object of the 
movement made by General Grant's forces in the western 
part of die State of Kentucky. It must also not be for^ 
gotten that his troops still held the posts at Paducah and 
Smithland, at the mouth of the Tennessee and Cumberland 

rivers. 

By keeping up a false show of an advance upon the rear 
of Columbust which had several times been attacked in the 
front by armed vessels, the Confederates were led to believe 
that post to be in actual danger, and consequently concen- 
trated all their available forces in that vicinity. 

Immediately on receiving permission from Halleck to 
proceed with his proposed plan, Grant made arrangements 
for the attack on Fort Henry. He had at his disposal 
some seventeen thousand men. It was arranged that Flag- 
officer Foote, with a flotilla of seven gunboats, should 
move along the Ohio, steer up the Tennessee, and open 
the attack,%vhile Grant, on the land side, should render 
what assistance was necessary and cut off all retreat.. On 
Monday, the 2d of February, Foote left Cairo, and on the 
morning of Tuesday was a few miles below Fort Henry. 
Grant, fn the meantime, with the divisions of McClernand 
and C. F. Smith, had embarked in transports which were 



( 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. I5I 

convoyed by the flotilla. These landed a few miles below 
the fort; and Foote proceeded up the river, having orders 
from Grant to move slowly and shell the woods, In order to 
discover whether there were any concealed batteries. On 
the morning of the 6th it was understood that everything 
was In readiness for the attack, which was to be made si- 
multaneously on land and water. A heavy thunder-storm 
had raged the previous night ; and, as a consequence, the 
roads were heavy and the streams so swollen that bridges 
had to be built for the passage of the artillery. The land 
forces thus encountering unlooked-for obstacles, were con- 
siderably delayed. Shordy after twelve o'clock Foote 
opened fire upon the fort. Beginning at a thousand yards' 
distance, he gradually ran his vessels to within six hundred 
yards of the enemy. The firing for a time was vigorously 
returned; but Foote pressed on with Irresisdble bravery, 
and his men worked with a will and as if they meant to 
win. It was evident to Tilghman from the first that it was 
next to impossible for him to hold the foot. A series of 
accidents occurred Inside the fort. A rifled twenty-four- 
pounder burst, killing and wounding a number of the men. 
A forty-two pounder accidentally burst, and killed three 
of the gunners. In a short dme the well-directed fire from 
the gunboats had dismounted seven of the guns and made 
them useless ; the flag-staff also was shot away. The gar- 
rison became completely demoralized. It was in vain that 
Tilghman attempted to replace the exhausted gunners. 
The troops in the camp outside the fort made good their 
escape, some by the Dover road, leading to Fort^Donelson, 
others on board a steamer which was lying a litde above 
Fort Henry. Foote had promised to reduce the fort within 
an hour. When he made that promise he counted on as- 
sistance from the forces on the land side. Without any 
such aid — for the land forces had not yet arrived on the 
scene — he made good his word, for the hour had scarcely 
expired when the white flag was raised. The main body 
of his troops having made good their escape, Tilghman, 
with his staff and some sixty artillerists, surrendered to the 
victorious Foote. In killed and wounded the Confederate 



1^2 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

loss was twenty-one men. The only serious damage sus- 
tained by the fleet in the river was on board the ironclad 
Essex. A shot from the enemy had penetrated her boiler, 
and some twenty-nine officers and men, including Com- 
mander Porter, were seriously scalded. 

The capture of Fort Henry was felt by the South to be 
a damaging blow, and it led to bitter murmuring and even 
loud complaints against the authorities at Richmond. It 
was jusdy regarded by the North as a victory of great 
importance. It was full of instruction, inasmuch as it 
proved the value of gunboats on the narrow rivers of the 
West, especially when acting in conjunction with land forces. 
"Fort Henry is ours !" said Halleck in his despatch to 
McClellan. " The flag of the Union is re-established on 
the soil of Tennessee. It will never be removed." Foote 
was formally thanked by the secretary of the navy. " The 
country," he was told, "appreciates your gallant deeds, and 
this department desires to convey to you and your brave 
associates its profound thanks for the service you have 
rendered." 

After the fall of Fort Henry, preparations were made 
for an attack on Fort Donelson with as little delay as pos- 
sible. General Halleck felt it to be his duty to do his ut- 
most to strengthen the army under Grant's command, and 
accordingly reinforcements were hurried forward from 
Buell's army, from St. Louis, Halleck's head-quarters, from 
Cincinnati, and from Kansas. 

Fort Donelson, as has already been stated, was distant 
from Fort Henry about twelve miles, and was situated near 
the town of Dover, on the west bank of the Cumberland, 
on a platform of elevated ground, which at its highest 
point rises from the river about one hundred feet. It was 
about forty miles above the point where the Cumberland, 
after draining the highlands of southeastern Kentucky and 
northeastern Tennessee, empties its waters into the Ohio. 
The entire work covered one hundred acres. The country 
around was rugged and heavily wooded. Naturally a 
strong position, everything had been done which art and 
science could accomplish to make it impregnable. On the 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 153 

water side It was especially strong, the batteries being ad- 
mirably planted and well mounted. Including the light 
artillery, there were in the fort at the moment of the attack 
not fewer than ninety-five pieces. With the men who had 
made good their escape thither from Fort Henry, the 
strength of the garrison amounted to twenty-one thousand 
men. All around the works on the land side, abatis had 
been formed by felling timber and half chopping off the 
smaller trees. 

As soon as It became evident that Fort Donelson was 
likely to be attacked, Johnston exerted himself to the 
utmost to make the position invulnerable. Reinforcements 
were hurried forward from Bowling Green ; the work was 
pushed day and night; and a fortified hne two and a half 
miles in length, enclosing the town of Dover, was drawn 
along the high ground, which commanded the avenues of 
approach. Gideon J. Pillow arrived with his command on 
the loth and took control. Simeon B. Buckner, at the head 
of the reinforcements from Bowling Green, arrived on the 
nth. On the 13th John B. Floyd, who had come from Vir- 
ginia with his followers. In obedience to orders received 
from Johnston, appeared upon the scene, and, outranking 
Pillow, took the chief command. 

On the evening of the day which witnessed the capture 
of Fort Henry, a flotilla under Lieutenant Phelps sailed up 
the Tennessee river, for the purpose of ascertaining the 
condition of the banks in the upper waters. The recon- 
noissance was completely successful. It was found that 
there was no real hindrance to a southward movement. The 
country was comparatively unprotected ; and the people 
seemed Impatient to be delivered from the dreadful tyranny 
under which they were groaning. On the nth of February 
a council of war was held; and the question was put: 
"Shall we march on Donelson, or shall we wait for further 
reinforcements ? " The decision was In favor of Immediate 
action. Foote was busy getting ready with his gunboats ; 
and the delay hitherto was mainly on that account. It was 
all-important that the gunboats should participate In the 
attack, but It was felt that every hour was adding to the 



^54 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



enemy's strength. At the head of 15,000 men, on Wed- 
nesday, the 1 2th, Grant moved from Fort Henry upon 
Donelson. The foremost brigade advanced by the tele- 
graph road, the others moved by the road which leads to 
Dover. For the month of February the day was beautiful. 
The atmosphere was warm and balmy, like a day in spring. 
In their march over the hilly country, the advancing troops 
experienced but little difficulty. Before sundown Grant 
was before the fort, and what remained of daylight he 




A VIEW OF THE COUXIRV, SHOWING FORT DONELSON IN THE DISTANCE. 

Spent in brini^inq- his troops Into position. During the 
night there was Httle idleness. Batteries were posted, and 
the line of battle was formed. Meanwhile Foote was mov- 
ing up the Cumberland with his gunboats, convoying trans- 
ports, which were to constitute Lewis Wallace's Third 
division. It was Grant's intention, should the gunboats 
arrive, to begin the attack In the morning. McClernand's 
division, consisting of the four brigades of Oglesby, Wal- 
lace, Mc Arthur, and Morrison, was posted on the right. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 155 

C. F. Smith's division, composed of the brigades of Cook, 
Lanman, and M. L. Smidi, was posted on the left. Lewis 
Wallace's division, so soon as it arrived, was to take Its 
position in the centre. The line extended some four miles, 
the right sweeping round almost to Dover, the left resting 
on Htckman's creek, where, at the house of a Mrs. Crisp, 
Grant established his head-quarters. 

Morning dawned, but there was no sign of the gunboats. 
Grant was unwilling to hazard a general engagement until 
the expected forces arrived. Early in the forenoon, how- 
ever, a cannonade was opened, and some lively work was 
done by Berge's sharpshooters, who, concealed behind the 
trees, picked off not a few of the Confederate gunners. 
About noon an attempt was made to effect a lodgement 
upon the Confederate intrenchments. McClernand ordered 
Colonel Wallace to capture a formidable battery, known as 
the Middle Redoubt. The troops employed for this pur- 
pose were Illinois regiments — the Seventeenth, Major 
Smith; the Forty-eighth, Colonel Hayn ; and the Forty- 
ninth, Colonel Morrison, McAllister's battery covering 
them. Hayn, being the senior colonel, took command 
of the attacking party. The attack was made in the most 
spirited manner. But the enemy was strongly posted; 
and although the national troops behaved with the utmost 
gallantry in the presence of overwhelming numbers and 
under a most galling fire, they were uldmately repulsed. 
An equally unsuccessful effort was made on the left by a 
portion of Lanman's brigade. In both cases the national 
loss was heavy. When the darkness came on, the troops, 
not a litde dispirited, had fallen back to the ground occu- 
pied by them in the morning. 

The night of the 13th presented a striking contrast to 
the beaudful spring-like morning. The afternoon hadjDe- 
come chilly, and toward evening rain fell in torrents. ^ The 
rain was succeeded by sleet and snow, and at midnight a 
severe frost set in, the mercury falling to ten degrees below 
the freezing point. The men were without tents, and many 
of the soldiers were not eveii provided with blankets. Fires 
were not permitted, as they w^ould prove marks for the 



156 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

enemy's guns. Scantily supplied with food, and with the 
pitiful cries of the wounded calling for water resounding in 
their ears, they were compelled to spend the weary hours 
resting on their arms. It was one of those sad nights 
often repeated before the war reached its close. 

The morning of the 14th dawned with apparently bright- 
ening prospects for the Federal arms. Fully realizing the 
peril of the situation, and the necessity of using every avail- 
able man, Grant had, at the close of the contest the night 
previous, sent a courier to General Lewis Wallace, who 
had been left behind with a small "garrison at Fort Henry, 
commanding him to hasten at once to the scene of action. 
Wallace, with his garrison, which consisted of the Eleventh 
Indiana, the Eighth Missouri, and Company A, Chicago 
artillery, in charge of a battery, was ready by the break of 
day. After such a night, the ground was not in the best 
condition for the movement of infantry and artillery, but 
the men were in excellent spirits, and in spite of the drift- 
ing snow which blew in their faces they made good time, 
Wallace being able to report at Grant's head-quarters before 
the hour of noon. On their arrival Lewis Wallace's little 
band found the Union soldiers in high hope and expecta- 
tion. During the course of the night Foote, with the gun- 
boats and transports, the latter bringing the Third or Wal- 
lace's division, about 10,000 strong, had arrived. Their 
landing had been safely effected ; they were already around 
Grant's head-quarters, and when Wallace appeared on the 
scene he was immediately placed in command and took his 
position in the centre, with Smith on the left and McCler- 
nand on the right. By this fresh accession of strength, 
Grant was enabled to complete the investment of the fort 
and its outworks ; and for the first time since he com- 
menced to grapple with the enemy he had the advantage 
of superior numbers. Supplies having arrived in abun- 
dance, rations were liberally supplied to the half-famished 
men, and preparations w^ere made for a general assault. 

The experience of the previous day had been such that 
even with largely increased forces, General Grant was 
unwilling to make any rash attack from the land side. The 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 57 

fort was powerfully mounted, and without the aid of earth- 
works and trenches, an attack made from the land side, 
whether upon a particular point or on the entire enemy's 
works, however it might result finally, could not fail to be 
attended by an enormous sacrifice of life. Grant's instruc- 
tions to his generals were that they should preserve the 
line of investment intact, being ready to repel any attempt 
which the enemy might make, either in the way of assault 
or escape. 

The gunboats had done so well at Fort Henry that per- 
haps too much was expected of them at Fort Donelson. 
At all events, it was arranged that the gunboats should 
have the honor of opening the assault. At three o'clock 
in the afternoon Foote moved forward with four ironclads 
and two wooden boats. In addition to these there was the 
gunboat " Carondelet," Commander Walke, which had ar- 
rived two days before. The armored vessels moved in 
front. While yet a mile and a half distant the gunboats 
opened fire, the batteries on the fort remaining perfectly 
silent. Onward the little fleet moved, still belching forth 
destruction, but meeting with no response. Suddenly, 
however, when within 400 yards of the batteries, a plung- 
ing fire was opened upon It by twenty heavy guns, placed 
high on the hillside, the shot falling with dreadful precision 
and effect. In face of this terrible fire Foote pressed closer 
and closer. The well-directed fire of the gunboats had 
silenced the upper battery of four guns. The columbiad 
and thirty-two-pound rifle now told with fatal effect on the 
ironclads, while the shot and shell from the ships fell 
powerless on the heavy sand-banks which protected the 
enemy's guns. A heavy shot had cut away the rudder- 
chains of the '' Louisville," and she drifted helplessly down 
the current. The flagship "St. Louis" was soon in a 
similar plight, Commodore Foote himself being wounded. 
The other two armored vessels had suffered severely, a 
heavy rifled cannon having burst on board the " Caron- 
delet." The battle had lasted one hour and a half It was 
useless to prolong the struggle. Orders were given to 
withdraw ; and as the flotilla moved back down the river, 



158 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

it received some severe parting blows from the shore bat- 
teries, some of the fu^ritives from which had returned and 
resumed their euns. It was another failure. The streneth 
of the place had not been properly gauged. What was 
practicable and easy at Fort Henry was impossible at Fort 
Donelson. In the attack the nationals lost fifty-four men 
in killed and wounded. The Confederates lost not a man, 
nor were their batteries in any way injured. Fifty-nine 
shots had struck the "St. Louis;" thirty-five the " Louis- 
ville;" thirty-five the '' Carondelet," and twenty-one the 
" Pittsburgh." 

Two days had now been wasted, and two experiments in 
the way of attack had been made, with signal want of suc- 
cess. All had been done on the river side which could be 
done with the means now at Grant's command. Any fresh 
attempt made on the land side was certainly as perilous as 
ever. A new plan had become necessary. It Vvas accord- 
ingly arranged in a conference between Grant and Foote, 
on the evening of Fridav, that the commodore should re- 
turn to Cairo, repair and augment his fleet, and return with 
a naval force adequate to the requirements of the situation. 
Grant resolved meanwhile to go on perfecting his line of 
investment, so strengthening his weak points as to shut the 
Confederates effectually within their intrenchments, and so 
cutting off their supplies as possibly to starve or frighten 
them into a surrender. 

From the position enclosed within the Confederate lines 
two roads led towards Nashville — the Wynn's Ferry road, 
running from Dover through Charlotte; and the other an 
obscure and at best an undesirable road, crossing the flats 
of the Cumberland. The latter road was submerged by 
the overflow of the river. There remained, therefore, but 
the one way of escape, if escape was to be attempted, and 
that was the Wynn's Ferry road. But this road was effec- 
tually covered by McClernand's division, the right wing of 
the Union army. Pillow's division, which formed the Con- 
federate left, was to make a vigorous attack upon the 
Union right flank; and Buckner's division, drawn from the 
right, a few men being left in the intrenchments to main- 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 59 

tain an appearance, was to strike at the same time the 
right fiank of the Union centre, which rested upon the 
Wynn's Ferry road. It was hoped that if Pillow's attack 
should prove successful, McClernand's division, the Union 
right, would be forced back upon Wallace's division, the 
Union centre, and that Buckner, striking the divided 
masses in flank, would roll both divisions back in confu- 
sion on that of Smith, the Union left. In such a case, the 
Wynn's Ferry road would be effectually opened as a way 
of escape, and possibly Grant's forces might be routed and 
driven to their transports. It was a daring and well-con- 
ceived plan ; and, as we shall by-and-by see*, so far as it 
was faithfully executed, it was a complete success. 

On the morning of Saturday, the 15th of February, at 
the early hour of live o'clock, Pillow's column, eight thou- 
sand strong, accompanied by Forrest's cavalry, thirty heavy 
guns, and a full complement of artillery, was already in 
motion. Pillow was resolved, as he said in his high-sound- 
ing style, " to roll the enemy in full retreat over upon Gen- 
eral Buckner," and then, by an attack in flank and rear, to 
"cut up the enemy and put him completely to rout." He 
went to his work with a will, and as if he meant to make 
his purpose good. McClernand was well posted to resist 
the assailants ; but, although this point has been disputed, 
there can be no reasonable doubt that he was taken by 
surprise. His division was arranged in three brigades — 
McArthur's on the right, Oglesby's in the centre, W. H. L. 
Wallace's on the left. Pillow's onslaught was swift and 
furious. It fell mainly upon the two right brigades, Mc- 
Arthur's and Oglesby's. The Confederate line covered 
the front of these brigades, and extended some distance 
beyond the right flank. In the struggle which ensued, 
there was no lack of heroism on either side. At a critical 
moment, timely and effective assistance was rendered by 
the sister brigade of W. H. L. Wallace, Colonel John A. 
Logan, at the head of his brave regiment, the Thirty-first 
Illinois, exerting himself by word and deed to sustain and 
cheer the men. In such a struggle, however, enthusiasm 
is but a sorry compensation for lack of numbers. The sol- 



I60 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

dlers did dielr best. Inch by inch the ground was con- 
tested. Overpowered, however, and outflanked, the two 
brigades were turned and forced from their position. 
Meanwhile Buckner, who had moved his troops over from 
the extreme Confederate right, formed them in front of 
McClernand's left brigade, Colonel W. H. Wallace. It 
will thus be seen that the whole hostile mass — the entire 
concentrated strength of the Confederate army — was 
pressing upon McClernand's division, the right wing of the 
Union army. The left brigade soon followed the example 
of the other two — it fell back from its position ; and by 
nine o'clock the entire position occupied in the beginning 
of the contest by the right wing of the national army was 
in the possession of the Confederates. The Wynn's Ferry 
road was open. 

The tide was still in favor of the Confederates. So far 
they had boldly carried out their plan, and successfully ac- 
complished their purpose. The national army was. indeed, 
at this particular moment in a very critical condition. The 
situation was all the more alarming that Grant, who had 
not been present all the morning, was not yet on the field. 
At 2 A. M. he had o^one on board a e^mboat to hold a con- 
sultation with Commodore Foote, who, it will be remem- 
bered, was wounded in the struggle the day previous. It 
is more than possible that if Grant had been on the field 
from the commencement of the contest, McClernand would 
have been able to hold his crround. In the absence of the 
general-in-chief there was no officer, during all those preg- 
nant hours, who could assume the right to combine and 
direct the entire forces in tlie field. The division next to 
IMcClernand was that of Lewis Wallace. When W^allace 
first heard the firing, he concluded that McClernand had 
resumed the attack. At about 8 a. ^L he received a mes- 
sage from McClernand askinof assistance. Not knowincr 

o o o 

what to do, lie sent the message to head-quarters ; but 
General Grant was still absent. Later he received an- 
other message from McClernand, disclosing the fact that 
his men were being pressed back by overwhelming num- 
bers. Thereupon Wallace detached two brigades, and 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 6l 

sent them under Colonel Cruft. Cruft, however, was in 
some way misled too far to the right, and being forced to 
fight his way, he arrived only in time to share the fate of 
the whole rio-ht wino-. Seeinor flocks of fuo^itives crowding 
up in the rear of his own line, Wallace promptly put in 
motion his remaining brigade under Colonel Thayer. The 
column had marched but a short distance when McCler- 
nand's briorades were met, retirinof to the left — retirine in 
good order and slowly, complaining of many things, but 
complaining most of all that their ammunition was ex- 
hausted. The brave fellows seemed to feel as if they had 
no right to be in that position. The enemy was following 
but slowly. Wallace had time to deploy his brigade on 
the crest of a hill which crossed the line along which the 
enemy was moving towards the left. Here he presented a 
firm front at right angles to his former front, and behind 
him the defeated troops of the right wing rallied and re- 
formed. In this position they awaited the approach of 
Pillow and Buckner. Mortified with the defeat of the 
morning, the troops of the right wing had no sooner filled 
their cartridges than they took their places and were ready 
for action. When, therefore, the Confederates advanced 
and began to ascend the crest, so terrific was the fire that 
they reeled and staggered and broke, falling back in wild 
confusion. A second time they attempted to charge ; but 
the second repulse was more disastrous than the first. 
The men could not ao^ain be brouorht into line. Some of 
them fled precipitately to their works ; the remainder were 
brought to a stand on the ground occupied by the national 
right wing in the early morning. 

Grant had now appeared on the field. It was about 
noon when the Confederates were driven back to their 
trenches. The battle had lulled ; but everything was yet 
in confusion. The chief must have bitterly regretted the 
fact of his own absence from the scene of action in the 
early part of the day. But it was no time now for idle and 
worthless lamentation. It was action that was needed — 
prompt, decided, vigorous action. Grant was not slow to 
come to a conclusion, although it is simply absurd to say 



1 62 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

that in this Instance he made up his mind at once. About 
three o'clock In the afternoon he called McClernand and 
Wallace aside for consultation. They were all on horse- 
back. Grant held In his hand some despatches, to which 
now and then he nervously turned his eyes. His face was 
flushed and revealed high excitement. He said somediing 
about the necessity of falling back and intrenching — about 
waiting for reinforcements and Foote's new flotilla. It was 
suggested by one of the other two that in consequence of 
McClernand's defeat the road to Clarksvllle was uncovered, 
and that the enemy might escape if he chose. All of a 
sudden Grant gave orders that the right wing should re- 
take the ground which it had lost In the morning, and that 
the left wing, under Smith, should make a simultaneous 
attack on the Confederate right. General Grant has since 
given us his own reason for the course which he resolved 
to pursue. "On riding upon the field," he says, 'T saw 
that either side was ready to give way If the other showed 
a bold front. I took the opportunity, and ordered an ad- 
vance of the whole line." 

The orders were promptly executed. Wallace took 
charge of the troops which had been engaged and which 
had suffered so much in the morning and early part of the 
day, and whose duty it was to resume lost ground. The 
ground was rough and badly blocked with wood. There 
were, besides, bloody memorials of the morning's struggle. 
The nationals, however, pressed on, the Confederates vig- 
orously resisting. For more than an hour the conflict 
raged fiercely, and the result seemed doubtful. Ultimately, 
however, the Confederates yielded to the fierce energy of 
their assailants, and were compelled to retire within their 
own intrenchments. In the hour of victory almost com- 
plete, when within one hundred and fifty yards of the 
enemy's works, Wallace was astonished by an order from 
the general-ln-chief, commanding him to halt and retire his 
troops, as a new plan of operations had been arranged for 
the morrow. He felt satisfied that Grant was Ignorant of 
the success which had attended his movement. Darkness, 
however, was at hand. He contented himself, therefore, 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 63 

with holdliig the ground he had taken, and disobeyed 
orders only to the extent of bivouacking on the field of vic- 
tory. Smith was equally successful in his attack on the 
Confederate right. Buckner, who in abandoning the left 
made it the easy prey of Wallace, arrived too late at his 
old position on the right to save it from the dashing energy 
of Smith. In spite of all that he could do, the enemy was 
forced from his intrenchments and driven inside the work. 

All along the line, the ground lost in the morning had 
been reclaimed. Nay, more : on both the left and the 
right the enemy had found it necessary to abandon his own 
chosen ground and to retire more and more under the 
works of the fort. When darkness fell, Grant had reason 
to feel satisfied. He had by his single will converted a 
day of disaster into a day of triumph. The fruit of victory 
was not yet in his hands, but it was ripe and ready to fall. 
So ended the third day at Fort Donelson. 

The night which followed was one of the saddest yet ex- 
perienced in the history of the war. The cold was intense, 
the thermometer indicating more than twenty degrees 
below the freezing point. The ice-covered branches of the 
trees swayed and crackled In the night breeze. Camp-life 
had not yet become a luxury. There were no tents, and 
even the blanket had not become a necessary part of the 
soldier's equipage. General Grant found a sleeping-place- 
In a negro hut. General Smith lay down on the frozen 
ground. The soldier slept as he best might, leaning on his 
musket or resting on his knapsack. Four thousand brave 
Americans lay scattered over the battle-field, many of them 
dead, some of them freezing to death, the feeble but piteous 
cries of the latter filling the weary hours with woe. It is 
In scenes such as these that true humanity stands forth con- 
spicuous and commands universal admiration. With such 
a background, goodness, pure, true, and unselfish, shines as 
if with a heavenly light. General Lewis Wallace, to his 
honor be it said, with many of his men, filled with his 
spirit and fired by his example, worked far into the morning 
hours, ministering to the wounded on both sides,> and. with 
kindly hands burying the dead. 



1 64 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Grant had made all necessary arrangements for resum- 
ing the attack along the whole line on the following (Sim- 
day) morning. Such attack, however, was not to be neces- 
sary. A council of war was held at Pillow's head-quarters, 
late on Saturday night. Floyd, Pillow, Buckner, and their 
staff officers were all present. Some bad temper was re- 
vealed ; and on many points there was difference of opin- 
ion. On one point they were agreed — that another sortie 
would be absolutely disastrous. Buckner did not believe 
that he could hold his position half an hour after daylight. 
In his judgment there was no escape from a surrender. 
Floyd and Pillow were equally of opinion that the situation 
was desperate, and that there ^A-as nothing for them but 
immediate capitulation. It was ultimately agreed that 
Buckner should assume the command, and that Floyd and 
Pillow should be allowed to make their escape, Flo\ d tak- 
ing with him his Virginia brigade. Floyd surrendered the 
command. Pillow, who w^as next in rank, said, "I pass it." 
.Buckner called for writing materials and a bugler ; and 
Floyd and Pillow^ hastened off to save their precious lives. 
Pillow crossed the river in a scow^ P^loyd and his men 
went on board a steamer at the wharf, and steered off 
amid the curses and hisses of their former companions in 
arms. It was a shameful transaction ; but Buckner's con- 
duct w^as honorable throughout. Floyd had now appeared 
in his true character. 

When on the morning of Sunday, the i6th of February, 
the lio^ht broke alono- the lines, there was no conviction 
more general among the national soldiers than that the 
stirring scenes of the previous day were about to be re- 
peated, and repeated, perhaps, in more aggravated and 
bloody form ; nor was there disposition anywhere to shirk 
the ordeal. Suddenly, however, the clear notes of the 
bugle were heard sounding a parley ; and as the gray dawn 
passed away before the brighter light of the opening day, 
a white flacr was seen waving over the fort. It was a token 
of a willingness to surrender. A letter was received by 
Grant from Buckner, asking for the appointment of com- 
missioners to settle upon terms of capitulation, and 




(i65) 



1 66 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

suggest 
follows 



supf^estine an armistice till noon. The letter reads as 



Head-quarters, Fort Donelson, Februmy i6th, 1862. 
5ir: — In consideration of all the circumstances governing the present 
situation of affairs at this station, I propose to the commanding officer of 
the Federal forces the appointment of commissioners to agree upon terms 
of capitulation of the forces and post under my command; and, in that 
view, suggest an armistice until twelve o'clock to-day. 
I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

S. B. BucKNER, Brig. -Gen. C. S. A. 
To Brigadier-General U. S. Grant, commanding United States 
forces near Fort Donelson. 

The General read this without a word. Then he handed 

it to Smith, who read it also. 

Grant. — " Well, what do you think ? " 

Smith. — "I think, no terms with traitors, by ! " 

The chief sat down, wrote this answer as fast as his pen 

could move, and passed it to Smith: 

Head-quarters Army in the Field, 
Camp near Donelson, February 16th, 1862. 
General S. B. Buckner, Confederate Army : 

Yours of this date proposing armistice, and appointment of commis- 
sioners to settle terms of capitulation, is just received. JVo ter??is except 
an unconditional and i?}iniediafe surrender can be accepted. I propose to 
move immediately upon your works. 

I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

U. S. Grant, Brigadier- General. 

The gray-haired veteran read it, and exclaimed : 

*• By , it couldn't be better ! " 

Then he went away with the despatch. Not another 
word passed between them, and Smidi did not remain in 
the cabin more than ten minutes. The phrase, afterward 
so famous, " I propose to move immediately upon your 
works," was not in the least *' buncombe," but literally ex- 
pressed Grant's intentions. The moment Smith lelt, he 
despatched Riggin to McClernand and Wallace, with in- 
structions to press forward right into the enemy's works as 
soon as the signal should be given. But Buckner made 
haste to reply : 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 67 

Head-quarters, Dover, Tenn., February idih^ 1862. 
To Brig. -Gen. U. S. Grant, U. S. Army: 

Sir: — The distribution of the forces under my command, incident to 
an unexpected change of commanders, and the overwhelming force under 
your command, compel me, notwithstanding the brilliant success of the 
Confederate arms yesterday, to accept the ungenerous and unchivalrous 
terms which you propose. 

I am, sir, your very obedient servant, 

S. B. BucKNER, Brig.- Gen. C. S. A. 

Grant received this with his usual serenity, ordered his 
horse, and with his staff rode over to Buckner, whom he 
had known at the Mihtary Academy. Buckner invited his 
guests to breakfast, and gave them some vile Confederate 
coffee. Then the two enemies of an hour before, smoking 
pacifically, discussed the surrender. Buckner asked sub- 
sistence for his men, and kindnesses for some wounded 
officers. Grant acceded to these requests. He decided, 
also, that officers might retain their side-arms and personal 
baggage, but that horses and all public property must be 
given up. Buckner was annoyed that Grant had been able 
to invest Donelson with so small a force. 

"If I had been in command," said he, "you would not 
have reached the fort so easily. 

" If you had," replied Grant, " I should have waited for 
reinforcements. But I knew Pillow would never come out 
of his works to fight." 

Smith soon arrived. Buckner, being an old army officer, 
had known him well, and as they shook hands he said : 

"That charge of yours last night was a splendid affair." 

" Yes, yes," replied the veteran ; " the men did well — 
they did well ; but it was no affair of mine ; I simply 
obeyed General Grant's orders." 

Grant permitted the Second low^a, in recognition of its 
gallantry, to raise its flag over the captured fort. Before 
noon the Union troops, in bright blue, marched in from 
three points, with streaming banners, gleaming muskets, 
bands playing, men singing and cheering, and the gun- 
boats firing a salute. 

The Confederates, in faded gray, stood mournfully beside 
the great piles of muskets and shot-guns, wondering at the 



l68 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

"Northern horde." Many, from the mountains of Tennes- 
see and Kentucky, were Union men at heart. Their garb 
was motley. Some had blankets wrapped around them, 
others old pieces of carpet, quilts, and buffalo robes. 
Their arms consisted of sincrle and double barrelled shot- 
guns, old Kentucky rifles, and flint-lock muskets, with here 
and there a modern piece. 

All the fiorhtinor had been in the woods. There were 
some leaves still on the trees, and the Confederates in gray 
were so near the color of the landscape that it was difficult 
to detect them. The Union men came unsuspectingly 
right upon them, to meet deadly reception from their 
double-barrelled shot-guns, the most effective weapons in 
a close contest. 

The Confederate water-battery was very strong, but the 
fort itself was a wilderness of zigzags and abatis spreading 
over a large area, formidable to the eye but really weak, 
and not bearing any logical relation to each other. 

The hills and ravines, so lately torn and crimsoned by 
fierce fighting, are now smoothed by rains and overgrown 
with shrubs and vines. The tremendous fortifications can 
hardly be seen, and ere long it will be impossible to trace 
their outlines. The thick mounds, too, have almost disap- 
peared. Where they sleep who died for us, kindly Nature 
strews her waving grass and her springing flowers, just as 
she covers the scars and wounds in our hearts with her 
frao^rant lilies of resio^nation and her tender willows of 
memory. 

About 15,000 prisoners, 17,600 small arms, and 65 guns 
constituted the prize wliich fell into the hands of the 
national commander. His losses were 2,041, of whom 425 
were killed. Grant paid a high compliment to his soldiers. 

The investment of Donelson had been followed by the 
evacuation of Bowling Green ; its fall was followed by the 
abandonment of Nashville. This, however, was not all. 
Polk found it necessary to evacuate Columbus and fall 
back on Island No. 10. The so-called Gibraltar of the 
West was forthwith occupied by national troops. The 
Southern line of defence was completely broken down. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 69 

General Grant had nobly accomplished the task which he 
had undertaken. Henceforward he was regarded as one 
of the strongest pillars of the national cause. 

After the fall of Donelson, it was only natural that Gen- 
eral Grant should, for a time at least, become the popular 
favorite. All over the Union his praises were liberally 
sounded; and by not a few who had acquired an insight 
into his character he was hailed already as the coming man. 
His sphere of acUon had been gready enlarged. General 
Halleck, as if to mark his appreciation of Grant's noble 
services, had assigned him to the command of the new Dis- 
trict of West Tennessee, a command which extended from 
Cairo to the northern borders of Mississippi, and embraced 
the endre country between the Mississippi and Cumberland 
rivers. General Grant took immediate steps to turn to 
account the victories which he had won, and to press the 
enemy sdll farther to the south. He established his head- 
quarters at Fort Henry, where General Lewis Wallace was 
in command. We have seen already that Foote's flodlla 
was w^ithdrawn from the Cumberland, that part of it had 
gone up the Tennessee river, and that Foote himself, with a 
powerful naval armament, had gone down the Mississippi 
for the purpose of co-operating with the land troops against 
Columbus, Hickman, Island No. lo, and New Madrid. 

It seems to have been the conviction of all the Union 
commanders — of Halleck, of Buell, of Grant — that a lodge- 
ment should be made at or near Corinth in Northern Mis- 
sissippi. The possession of Corinth or Florence or Tus- 
cumbia, but pardcularly Corinth, would give the national 
forces control of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad, the 
key to the great railway communications between the Mis- 
sissippi and the East, as well as the border slave States and 
the Gulf of Mexico. It would facilitate the capture of Mem- 
phis, because it would place it more completely at the mercy 
of the troops now moving down the Mississippi ; ^ and it 
would render effecdve assistance to General Curds, who, 
as we have seen, was at this moment carrying on important 
operadons in Arkansas. While adopting vigorous meas- 
ures for the purpose of giving effect to the general plan, 



170 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Grant had the mortification to receive an order from Hal- 
leek, instructing him to turn over his command to General 
C. F. Smith, and to remain himself at Fort Henry. 

In such circumstances such an order must have been 
humiUating in the last degree to General Grant; and it is 
not surprising that, stung to the quick as he must have 
been, he should have asked to be relieved from duty. As 
a general rule, it is unwise to attach too much importance 
to individuals in a great national contest. No one man is 
absolutely indispensable. It is undeniable, however, that 
the retirement of General Grant at this particular juncture 
might have materially affected the future history of the great 
national struggle now fairly begun, and already bearing 
upon it somewhat of the impress of his character and 
genius. Complying with a request for an interview, Grant 
had, on the 27th of February, gone on a visit to Buell, up 
the Cumberland to Nashville. In the meantime Halleck 
had ordered him to ascend the Tennessee, then in full flood, 
and establish himself on the Memphis and Charleston rail- 
road at or near Corinth. On the ist of March, Halleck 
ordered him to fall back from the Cumberland to the Ten- 
nessee, with the view of carrying out the orders previously 
given. It was supposed at this moment that the Confeder- 
ates had retreated to Chattanooga. Sherman meanwhile 
received orders to seize all steamboats passing Paducah, 
and to send them up the Tennessee for the transportation 
of Grant's army. On hearing that Grant had gone up the 
Cumberland, Halleck telegraphed to him : " Why don't you 
obey my orders? Why don't you answer my letters ? Turn 
over the command of the Tennessee expedition to General 
C. F. Smith, and remain yourself at Fort Henry." At the 
same time Halleck wrote complainingly to McClellan at 
Washington, saying he could get no reports from Grant, 
whose troops were demoralized by their victory. To Grant 
himself Halleck wrote, stating that his repeated neglect of 
positive orders to report his strength had created great 
dissatisfaction, and seriously Interfered with the general 
military arrangements ; and that his going to Nashville 
when he ought to have been with his troops, had given 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. I7I 

such offence at Washington that it had been considered 
advisable to arrest him on his return. It is possible that, 
judged by the highest forms of military law, Grant, in some 
of the particulars charged, was to blame. It is possible, 
too, that Halleck, who was a man of the old school, and 
strict to the letter of the law, was officious overmuch. 
Grant, however, had his explanation ready. He had not 
received Halleck's order in time ; he had gone to Nashville 
for the good of the service, and not for personal pleasure 
or for any selfish motive ; he had reported every day, had 
written on an average more than once a day, and had done 
his best to obey orders from head-quarters ; he had not per- 
mitted his troops to maraud ; on the contrary, he had sent 
the marauders on to St. Louis. He submitted to instruc- 
tions by turning the army over to General Smith. He 
asked, however, that he might be relieved. The explana- 
tions so far satisfied Halleck that he requested the author- 
ities at Washington to allow the matter to drop. Smith, 
however, remained in command, bi;t, as the reader will 
soon discover, only for a brief period. 

The temporary change of commanders did not allow 
any intermission of the work. The expedition up the Ten- 
nessee was hurried forward. An acquisition was found in 
Sherman, who, in compliance with orders from Halleck, 
reported to Smith. 



CHAPTER IV. 

WAR OF THE REBELLION Co7ltmUed. 

Death of General Smith— General Grant again in charge — The plans of the Confed. 
erates — Buell ordered to join Grant — Johnston's proclamaiion — The battle of Shiloh 
The morning of the 6th of April— The nationals attacked— A tremendous on- 
slaught — Grant not on the field — His arrival — Sherman's bravery — Sherman and 
Prentiss driven from their ground — The Confederates gaining ground — Four divi- 
sion camps plundered — Three divisions routed — Wallace mortally wounded — The 
situation desperate — Driven to a corner of the field — Both armies exhausted— 
Johnston wounded and carried from the field — Beauregard in command — The 
batiery on the crest of the hill — A valley of death — The second day — The battle 
resumed— Lewis Wallace and Buell now on the field— Beauregard attempts to turn 
the national left— The Confederates pressed back— The nationals gaining ground 
all along the line— The battle ended— Unexampled bravery on both sides— Mag- 
nanimity of General Grant— Major-General Grant— Beauregard retreats to Corinth 
— He strengthens his position— Halleck at Corinth — Grant second in command— 
Halleck's complaint against Grant — Battle of luka — Battle of Corinth — Grant's 
order of congratulation — He assumes command of the Department of thelen- 
nessee — Important reconnoissances. 

The Illness of General Smith, which resulted In death on 
the 25th of April, brought Grant again to the front. On the 
17th of March he arrived at Savannah, Tennessee, established 
his head-quarters, and took command. The entire force 
was about 33,000 men. General Buell, after repeated so- 
licitations that he might be permitted to abandon Nashville, 
cross Tennessee and join his forces to those of Grant, with 
a view to counteract the Confederate concentration at Co- 
rinth, had at last obtained Halleck's consent. The Army of 
the Ohio, which numbered some 40,000 men, was therefore 
already on Its march ; and by the 20th of March It had 
reached Columbia. The roads were bad and the weather 
stormy; but It was not unreasonable to conclude that Buell 
would be able to accomplish the distance In time. 

When Halleck heard that Johnston had disappeared 
from Murfreesboro', and that his object was to join Beau- 
(172) 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 73 

regard at Corinth, he ordered Buell to hurry forward to 
the aid of Grant, and counteract as far as possible the 
Confederate concentration. There had been unnecessary 
delay, which permitted the Confederate generals to unite 
their strength ; and now the weather and the roads were 
such that, although Buell's army was at Columbia on the 
20th, it took full seventeen days to reach Pittsburgh Land- 
ing, a distance of only ninety miles. 

At this time Breckenridcre, with the Confederate rieht, 
which consisted of eleven thousand men, was stationed at 
Burnsville ; Hardee and Bragg, with more than twenty 
thousand men, formed the centre at Corinth ; and Polk at 
Hindman, with ten thousand men, were on the left, to the 
north of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad. 

On the 3d of April, their available strength being forty 
thousand men, the Confederates commenced their onward 
march. The roads were in a terrible condition, and in 
consequence die progress made was slow. It was intended 
to attack the national army on the 5th ; but the attack was 
delayed in consequence of a heavy rainstorm which fell in 
the afternoon. That night they were distant from the na- 
tional pickets only about three-quarters of a mile. 

The night of the 5th was wild and stormy. The next 
morning (Sunday) rose bright and clear. The recent rains, 
while they had filled the creeks and streams, had given an 
air of freshness to the surrounding country. In the Union 
camp it was still unknown towards what point the enemy 
might be moving ; but there was watchfulness everywhere. 
Prentiss' guards hg^ been doubled the night before ; and 
his pickets were out one mile and a half Sherman's troops 
had already breakfasted, and were formed into line. With 
the early dawn Hardee's corps, which formed the first Con* 
federate line, was in motion. Quickly but silently they 
passed across the ravine of Lick creek and the ground 
which separated it from the outlying divisions of the 
Union army. It was the more easy for them to move 
noiselessly that the fallen leaves, being soaked with rain, 
made no rustling sound under the footsteps of the men. 
The onslauorht was tremendous. 



174 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



When the first shots were fired, Grant was not on the 
ground He had gone down the river to Savannah, some 
nine miles off, to have an iaterview with Buell. Soon as 




GENERAL SHERMAN. 



he heard the first guns, he hastened to the scene of action 
Leavincr a letter for Buell, and ordering Nelson, who had 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 75 

arrived with a portion of Bu ell's forces, to hurry forward, 
he took a steamboat for Pittsburgh Landino-. Haltine at 
Crump's Landing-, he gave directions to Lewis Wallace to 
follow at once. It was eight o'clock before Grant reached 
the field of Shiloh. He saw that he had to fight the com- 
bined Confederate force, and without the aid of Buell. 
What the Confederate strength was Grant could only guess. 
The combined army was over forty thousand strong. 
Grant had an available force of thirty-three thousand men. 
He believed he could depend upon Lewis Wallace, who 
had five thousand more. Some severe work, however, had 
already been done. There was a considerable gap between 
Prentiss' right and Sherman's left. It w^as into this gap 
that Hardee tried to force himself, his object being to out- 
flank and turn both lines. In the beginning of the conflict 
Sherman's left was sorely pressed and suffered terribly. 
But that active and skilful general was present in the 
thickest of the fight. 

All, how^ever, was in vain. In poured the Confederates 
in ever-increasinor numbers. Bracro^ had come to the aid 
of Hardee ; and Polk, with the third Confederate line, was 
already moving toward Sherman's rear. By nine o'clock 
a very large portion of Sherman's division was virtually 
out of the fieht; and before ten Prentiss had been forced 
from his ground, his camp captured and plundered, his di- 
vision thrown into confusion, and he himself isolated from 
his men. But for the pluck and skill of Sherman, the 
battle at this stage might have been lost. Feeling the 
pressure of the enemy and in danger of being caught in 
the rear, he swung round upon his right as upon a pivot, 
coming out at a right angle and taking entirely new ground. 

The falling back of Sherman, while it enabled him to 
prolong the contest and successfully to prevent attack in 
the rear, left McClernand's division completely exposed. 
On this, therefore, the Confederate forces fell with tremen- 
dous energy. For a time McClernand boldly and even 
successfully resisted, most effective aid being rendered by 
Dresser's powerful rifled cannon. Regiment after regi- 
ment of the Confederates rushed through the abandoned 



1^6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

camps and pressed forward only to be cut to pieces by the 
deadly rifle shot. Ultimately, however, the force of over- 
whelming; numbers began to tell on McClernand's lines. 
He was forced to retire, not, however, except in the most 
perfect order, fighting as he went, and bravely contesting 
every inch of ground. By eleven o'clock this division was 
on a line with Hurlbut, close to W. H. L. Wallace, with 
Sherman to the right. 

Meanwhile Stewart's brigade, of Sherman's ^ division, 
which was posted on the extreme left of the national line, 
about two miles from Pittsburgh Landing, on the Hamburg 
road, near Lake Creek, where Buell was expected to land, 
was, in consequence of the falling back of the other divi- 
sions, in an extremely perilous position. 

The batde had raged since the early morning. About 
ten, Grant visited Sherman's camp, and finding that the 
supply of cartridges was short, he organized a train of am- 
munidon wagons to run between the camp and the Land- 
ing an arrangement beset with great difficulty, in conse- 

qtfence of the large number of fugidves who were forcing 
their way through the narrow road. By twelve o'clock 
noon, the Confederates had possession of the ground oc- 
cupied in the morning by the first line of the national 
army; and the camps of Sherman, McClernand, Prendss, 
and Stewart had been captured and plundered. Three of 
the five divisions of that army had been completely routed. 
The ground being entirely cleared before them — Prentiss' 
brigade, as we have seen, being demolished and Stewart 
having been compelled to retreat, McClernand, too, and 
Sherman having both yielded on the right — the Confeder- 
ates, apparendy resolved to push matters to a crisis, rushed 
with tremendous fury upon Hurlbut, who sdll maintained 
his original position, and who had been joined by Prentiss 
and some two thousand of his men. W. H. L. Wallace 
flew to the aid of Hurlbut, taking with him the Missouri 
batteries of Stone, Richardson, and Weber. Hurlbut, who 
had hitherto been in the open fields, now fell back into the 
woods which lay between his camp and the river, and there, 
nobly aided by Wallace, who fought like a hero of old, 




i^n) 



1/8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

gallantly resisted the foe for several weary hours. Upon 
this compact body of national troops three most desperate 
charges were made, as if upon a wall of iron. In one of 
these encounters General W. H. L. Wallace fell, mortally 
wounded. McArthur took the command ; but in spite of 
their best efforts, both he and Hurlbut were compelled to 
retire a little farther down and towards the river. In the 
confusion, Prentiss and his company getting isolated, were 
captured, sent to the Confederate rear, and finally marched 
to Corinth as prisoners of war. 

Grant had been pressed into a corner of the battle-field, 
his army at this time occupying a space of not more than 
four hundred acres on the very verge of the river. As 
yet there were no signs of General Lewis Wallace. Buell, 
too, had failed to come to time. Five of the Union camps 
had been captured ; and many guns and prisoners had 
fallen into the enemy's hands. 

The Confederates, however, were less strong than they 
seemed. Success had broken their ranks ; and the hard 
work of the day had produced its natural fruit. The men 
were completely worn out. Some of their best men had 
perished. Generals Gladdon and Hindman had been 
killed ; and about half-past two o'clock, when pressing his 
men towards the Landing, and almost recklessly exposing 
himself. Commander-in-chief Johnston received a rifle 
bullet in the leg, which proved fatal. There was a lull in 
the fight after Johnston fell ; but Beauregard assumed com- 
mand ; and the struggle for possession of Pittsburgh 
Landing was resumed with fresh energy. Beauregard 
felt that there was no time to lose ; for night and Buell 
were coming. 

The entire strength of the Confederate army was at 
this stage being pressed against the national left. It 
seemed to be the object of Beauregard to turn the na- 
tional line or force them into the river. In any case, he 
was determined to seize the Landing. Happily, as the re- 
sult proved, a deep ravine lay between the Confederates 
and the nationals, who, cooped up as they were, still 
covered the Landing. This ravine was impassable for 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. lyg 

artiller)^ and cavalry. In consequence of the heavy rains, 
the bottom was wet and the sides sHppery. The ravine led 
down to the river; and at its mouth the two gunboats 
Tyler and Lexington had taken position, their commanders 
having obtained permission from General Grant to exercise 
their discretion in shelling the woods and sweeping the 
ravine. On the brow of his side of the ravine General 
Grant had hastily flung up some earthworks in the form of 
a half-moon. To several siege guns which were parked 
there, Colonel Webster, Grant's chief of staff, added a 
number of guns which had belonged to light batteries, now 
broken up, and thus secured a semi-circular defence of 
about fifty cannon. This hurriedly improvised battery 
reached round nearly to the Corinth road. Volunteers 
were called for; and Dr. Cornyn, surgeon of the First 
Missouri artillery, having offered his services, his example 
was quickly followed. The Confederate assault was led by 
Chalmers, Withers, Cheatham, Ruggles, Anderson, Stuart, 
Pond, and Stevens. It was a perilous attempt, but it was 
bravely made. Down the steep sides of the ravine they 
rushed, uttering their favorite and familiar cry. For a mo- 
ment it seemed as if all was lost, and as if Beauregard was 
about to crown the day's work by a final crushing blow. 
The slippery sides of the ravine, and the slush aiid mud 
at the bottom, gready hindered the movements of the at- 
tacking party. At a signal given, Webster's cruns from 
their fifty mouths opened fire in front ; while the^Tyler and 
Lexington, striking the Confederates on the flank, swept 
the ravine with their eight-inch shells. The Confederates 
had fallen into a trap. Every onward movement was vio-- 
orously repulsed. Again and again and yet again did the 
Confederates face the terrible fire, rushing across the ravine 
as if they would storm the battery in front; but it was 
only to be mowed down like grass or driven back like 
sheep. The ravine was filled with the wounded and the 
dead. So dense was the smoke that the endre scene was 
wrapped in almost midnight darkness— a darkness relieved 
only by the swift-recurring rifle flash and the cannon's 
blaze. Beauregard, seeing that it was useless to prolong 



i8o 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



the Struggle, withdrew his men. The firing now ceased, 
and Grant was left master of the ground. Before the 
close of the struggle, Nelson, with Buell's advance, had 
arrived on the field ; and Lewis Wallace, having at last 
found his way, was coming up with his five thousand men. 

The dreary hours of the night were sufficiently filled 
with horrors. The gunboats kept up an incessant cannon- 
ade, in some places setting the woods on fire. The 
wounded on both sides vainly sought to escape from the 
grasp of this new and terrible destroyer. Happily a heavy 
rain-storm fell upon the scene of agony, and the fire was 
extinguished. Shortly after the firing had ceased, Grant 




BURNING HORSES AT SHILOH. 



visited Sherman; and as it was the opinion of both that the 
Confederates were exhausted, it was agreed that the atlack 
should be resumed early in the morning. Subsequently 
Grant visited each of the division commanders, giving the 
necessary instructions, and then flung himself on the wet 
ground and snatched a few hours' rest, with his head rest- 
ing on the stump of a tree. During the night Lewis Wal- 
lace came up, and Buell arrived in person. All night 
through steamboats kept busily plying between Savannah 
and Pittsburgh Landing, bringing up the remaining divisions 
of Buell's army. Nelson's division was all on the field by 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. l8l 

nine o'clock p. m. Crittenden's arrived a little later; and 
by five in the morning McCook's division, which was the 
last to come up, having had to wait for boats, was all safely 
disembarked. Twenty-seven thousand men were thus 
added to the national army. 

With the early light of the morning of the 7th of April, 
which came in with a drizzling rain, the troops were in po- 
sition and ready to make the attack. The fresh troops 
were placed in line, as they came upon the field, considera- 
bly in advance, and upon the ground abandoned by Beau- 
regard after the failure of his last attack. Nelson was on 
the left; then in order Crittenden, McCook, Hurlbut, 
McClernand, Sherman, and Lewis Wallace. Thomson, of 
Wallace's division, with his field-guns, was the first to dis- 
turb the silence of the morning and to awaken the echoes 
of the forest. The response was vigorous; but the fresh 
troops of Wallace stood bravely to their work. At this 
moment Grant arrived, and ordered Wallace to press for- 
ward and attack the Confederate left under Bragg, who, 
since the death of Johnston, was second in command. This 
was gallandy done, the Confederates being compelled to 
abandon the high ground, which was soon occupied by 
Wallace's troops. Here a halt was made, Wallace expect- 
ing Sherman to come to his aid. 

Meanwhile the two armies had come into collision at the 
other extremities of their lines. Buell's force, which lay 
nearest to Pittsburgh Landing, composed the centre and left 
of Grant's new line of battle. The divisions of Nelson and 
Crittenden only were ready, when Wallace's guns were 
heard booming to the right. They moved forward at once, 
Nelson's division leading. Their artillery had not yet ar- 
rived ; but the batteries of Mendenhall and Terrill, of the 
regular service, were placed at their disposal. Nelson had 
moved half a mile, at least, before he felt the enemy. At 
the first touch he seemed to yield ; but it was only for a 
moment. At this point Beauregard had gathered up his 
strength and was resolved to strike a deadly blow. U he 
could turn the national left, he might still make himself 
master ot the Landing. His onslaught was tremendous. 



1 82 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Mendenhall's battery was hurried Into action, and the ad- 
vancing Confederates were driven back In confusion by a 
tempest of grape and canister. Hazen's brigade charged, 
captured one of Beauregard's batteries, and turned it with 
deadly effect on the foe. Once more the Confederates 
came up, with redoubled strength, and Hazen fell back 
before the advancing tide. TerrlU's battery of McCook's 
division was now got into position. Pouring forth shell 
from his ten-pounders and grape and canister from his 
brass twelves, Terrill did splendid and effective work. For 
two hours the artillery conflict raged. 

Sherman's captured camp was still in the Confederate 
rear, and to this as an objective point the national line kept 
slowly but steadily advancing. Sherman and Wallace, car- 
rying out Grant's instructions to the letter, have advanced 
under a terrible fire and have reached the ridge occupied 
by the former on Sunday morning. The little log-church 
in Shiloh has again become a conspicuous object in the 
battle-field. Beauregard, despairing of success on the left, 
had, by countermarching his troops, greatly strengthened 
himself in front of the enemy's right. The struggle at this 
point was protracted and severe. Sherman and Wallace 
held their ground; and it soon became apparent that Beau- 
regard's strength was all but exhausted. 

At the same time that the Confederate general had con- 
centrated his troops against the national right, he did not 
neglect an opportunity which seemed to present itself more 
towards what might be called the national centre. Notic- 
ing a slight gap between Crittenden and McCook, he en- 
deavored to force a passage between them. Here he made 
his last effort — his last decided stand. It was all in vain. 
McCook's division stood like a wall of iron. The Confed- 
erate centre now began to yield. All along the line from 
Nelson on the left to Sherman and Wallace on the right, 
the nationals were pressing forward. Everywhere the 
enemy was seen retiring. It was now half-past five o'clock; 
and the wearied national troops being in no mood to pur- 
sue the foe, the retreat was the more easily conducted. 
The two days' fighting had resulted in the loss of over 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 



83 



twenty thousand men — the Confederate killed and wounded 
amounting to more than ten thousand, the nationals to 
nearly twelve thousand. 

General Halleck only did what was right when he thanked 
Generals Grant and Buell, "and the officers and men of their 
respective commands, for the bravery and endurance with 
which they sustained the general attack of the enemy on the 
6th, and the heroic manner in which on the 7th they defeated 




GENERAL GRANT AT PITTSBURGH LANDING— SCENE ON THE SECOND 
DAY'S FIGHTING. 

and routed the entire Confederate army." General Grant 
showed his magnanimity when, in writing to the War De- 
partment, he said : " Sherman held with raw troops the key- 
point of the Landing. It is no disparagement to any other 
officer to say that I do not believe there was another division 
commander on the field who had the skill and enterprise to 
have done it. To his individual efforts I am indebted for 
the success o( the battle." 

Towards the close of the triumphant day General Grant, 



184 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

who seemed to be everywhere present, met the First Ohio 
regmient near a position occupied by the Confederates, 
which it was very important at that juncture to take. He 
halted the regiment, and placed himself at its head. The 
troops recognized him with an enthusiastic cheer. General 
Grant ordered them "to charge," and led them in person, 
as much exposed as any private to the fire of the foe. 
They would have followed him to the cannon's mouth. An 
exhausted and retreating regiment, animated by the sight, 
closed up their wavering ranks, and with cheers joined in 
the charge. The foe was swept pell-mell from the spot; 
and thus one of the most important points of the battle- 
field was gained. 

The news of this splendid victory spread like lightning. 
The name of Grant was hailed with joy, while the deeds of 
his gallant army were read with eager delight by every 
loyal citizen and true soldier throughout the land. The 
President hastened to express his gratitude to Grant by 
sending him the commission of Major-General. Everybody 
rejoiced at this act of justice except General Halleck, who 
did all in his power to give exclusive credit for the victory 
to C. F. Smith, and to secure for that officer the reward 
which Grant had so honestly won. On the other hand, 
Grant never for a moment withheld the praise which was 
due to his subordinates, but with the least possible delay 
recommended all who earned it for promotion, and yet there 
were some among them who did not scruple to charge him 
with incompetency, or to circulate calumnious reports 
against his private character. 

The victory at Shiloh broke down the second line of Con- 
federate defence, as the fall of Donelson had broken down 
the first. 

After his defeat on the 7th of April Beauregard retired. 
in good order to Corinth. The retreat was conducted in 
circumstances of great inconvenience and hardship, and the 
successful manner in which it was accomplished was a tri- 
umph of military genius on the part of the Coniederate 
commander. Arriving at Corinth, Beauregard made all 
needed preparations for whatever attack might be made. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 85 

As a Strategic point, for the South at least, Corinth had 
already been shorn of much of its value. When Buell set 
out from Nashville to reinforce Grant at Shiloh, he sent 
General Mitchell southward, with instructions to destroy, 
as far as possible, the Memphis and Charleston Railroad. 
On the 4th of April Mitchell was at Shelbyville, whence 
he hastened forward by forced marches to Huntsville, tak- 
ing the town by surprise at an early hour on the morning 
of the nth, and capturing seventeen locomotives, more 
than one hundred passenger cars, a large amount of sup- 
plies of every kind, with about one hundred and sixty 
prisoners. At Huntsville the railroad lines were torn up 
both to the east and west of the town. From Huntsville 
he sent one expedition eastward as far as Stevenson, and 
another expedition westward as far as Decatur and Tus- 
cumbia, the object of both expeditions being to capture 
what could be had and to destroy the railroads. On the 
1 6th of April Mitchell could say to his soldiers : " You have 
struck blow after blow with a rapidity unparalleled. Steven- 
son fell, sixty miles to the east of Huntsville. Decatur and 
Tuscumbia have been in like manner seized and are now oc- 
cupied. In three days you have extended your front of opera- 
tions more than one hundred miles, and your morning guns 
at Tuscumbia may now be heard by your comrades on the 
battle-field made glorious by their victory before Corinth." 
Mitchell had placed his army midway betw^een Corinth and 
Nashville, and opened communication with Buell, and had 
added another hundred miles of the Tennessee to the free 
navigation of the North. Under date of May ist, wridng 
to the secretary of war, he could say : " The campaign is 
ended, and I now occupy Huntsville in perfect security; 
while all of Alabama north of the Tennessee river floats no 
flag but that of the Union." It was not without good rea- 
son that Mitchell was commissioned a major-general of 
volunteers. The importance of Corinth had been fully 
recognized by Halleck and Grant as well as by Buell and 
Mitchell. A few days after the batde of Shiloh, General 
Sherman, v/ith some fresh troops from Buell's army, moved 
up the Tennessee to the mouth of Bear Creek, and there 



1 86 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

destroyed the railroad bridge which spans the river at that 
place. 

On the 1 2th Halleck arrived at Pittsburorh Landine and 
took command in person of the " Grand Army of the Ten- 
nessee;" for such now was its title. Grant was placed 
second in command, without any real duty. The manner 
in which he had fought the batde of Shiloh was not satis- 
factory to his chief; and he was compelled for a second 
time to submit to uncalled-for humiliation. Grant bore his 
punishment with the best grace possible. Halleck, as if on 
second thoughts, did what he could to reassure him, in- 
forming him that no censure was intended, and that his 
position was that which was due to his rank. Halleck's 
objection to Grant's conduct in the late contest was that he 
had not shown sufficient caution — that he had erred, in 
fact, in not throwing up whatever fortifications were pos- 
sible in the circumstances between himself and the enemy. 
As if to justify his complaint, and to show what should 
have been done at Shiloh, Halleck moved forward with a 
caution which became painful, intrenching himself at every 
step. Blame now fell upon him in turn. He was cautious 
overmuch. It was tauntingly said that it took him six 
weeks to march fifteen miles. 

Shortly afterwards, Halleck went to Washington, for the 
purpose of entering upon the duties of General-in-Chief, 
to which position he had been called by the President, but 
before starting, he offered the command of the army to 
Colonel Robert Allen, chief supervising quartermaster in 
the West, an educated soldier and an able man. It was 
only when Allen positively declined, that the command was 
restored to Grant, but with still restricted authority. He 
was ordered to garrison a large number of points and to 
send reinforcements to Buell, in doing which he was thrown 
upon the defensive. But while Halleck was thus scattering 
the national forces, the Confederates had been taught a 
lesson, which made them concentrate all their available 
means, east of the Mississippi. 

Corinth was iJie strategic point in Grant's department. 
The Tennessee river bein^^ too low for steamers in summer, 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 87 

he drew his supplies from Columbus, Kentucky, which com- 
pelled him to keep open one hundred and fifty miles of 
railway through a guerrilla infested region. 

Garrisoning Corinth, Bolivar and Jackson, all important 
points his force was too small to defend easily his great 
department, much less to take the offensive. Bragg, with 
a laro-e army, was now moving toward Kentucky, so every 
man diat could be spared was taken from Grant, while Van 
Dorn and Price constandy threatened him. He was sadly 
hampered and harassed, but watched the enemy vigilandy, 
and remodelled and strengthened the Corinth fortihcations 
a fact soon to prove of vital importance. 

Slaves sdll flocked to the national camps. Congress had 
prohibited officers or soldiers from returning them to their 
masters, under pain of dismissal from the service. Per 
contra, Halleck's Order No. Three was still in force. Of 
course, it was impossible to harmonize instructions which 
conflicted so positively; but Grant on August nth with 
characteristic subordination, attempted it, and issued the 
following : 

Recent acts of Congress prohibit the army from returning fugitives 
from labor to their claimants, and authorize the employment of such 
persons in the service of the government. The following orders are 
therefore published for the guidance of the army in this military district 
in this matter : ^ c u 

I. All fugitives thus employed must be registered, the names ot the 
fugitive and claimants given, and must be borne upon the morning re- 
ports of the command in which they are kept, showing how they are em- 
ployed. , 

IL Fugitive slaves may be employed as laborers in the quartermaster s, 
subsistence, and engineer departments, and whenever by such employ- 
ment a soldier may be saved to the ranks. They may be employed as 
teamsters, as company cooks (not exceeding four to a company), or as 
hospital attendants and nurses. Officers may employ them as P"vate 
servants, in which latter case the fugitive will not be paid or rationed by 
the government. Negroes not thus employed will be deemed '' unauthor- 
ized persons," and must be excluded from the camps. 

III. Officers and soldiers are positively prohibited from enticing slaves 
to leave their masters. When it becomes necessary to employ this kind 
of labor, commanding officers of posts or troops must send details (always 
under the charge of a suitable commissioned officer), to press into service 
the slaves of disloyal persons to the number required.** 



1 88 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

One day while Grant and his staff were riding down to 
take a drink from a sulphur spring a few miles south of his 
head-quarters, they heard a musket shot from a log-hut 
near by. A mother and daughter came running out, per- 
sued by a Union soldier, who had fired his gun to terrify 
them, and then attempted violence. Quick as thought the 
general sprang from .his horse, wrenched away the musket, 
and with the butt of it felled the brute to the earth, where he 
lay wdth no sign of life except a litde quivering of the 
foot. 

"I guess you have killed him, general," remarked one 
of his staff officers. 

" If I have, it only served him right," rejoined Grant. 

But the miscreant recovered, and was taken back to his 
quarters. 

On the loth of September, Price having reached North- 
ern Mississippi with his army of about twelve thousand men, 
started towards luka, where he arrived on the 19th, having 
driven in small detachments of the national troops from 
Jacinto and Chewalla. He made a feint of following Bragg 
in his northern march, in the hope that Grant would pursue 
him, and thus leave Corinth an easy prey to Van Dorn. 
But Grant, whose head-quarters were at Jackson, Tennessee, 
was too sagacious to fall into such a trap. Knowing from 
his scouts that Van Dorn could not reach Corinth for four 
or five days yet, he determined to crush Price by sending 
out a heavy force under Ord and Rosecrans, who had suc- 
ceeded Pope. He therefore threw Ord towards luka, on 
the north side of the railroad, reinforcing him by Ross* 
brigade from Bolivar, bringing his force up to about five 
thousand men, and directed Rosecrans, with about nine 
thousand men in all, to move towards luka by the way of 
Jacinto and Fulton — hoping thus to cut off the Confederate 
retreat and to concentrate a force sufficient to overwhehn 
Price. This combined movement commenced at an early 
hour on the i8th of September, and although the distances 
to be overcome did not exceed in either case thirty miles, 
the Confederates discovered it before it was fairly executed. 
For some reason not satisfactorily explained, Rosecrans 




(189) 



190 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

failed to occupy the Fulton road. The junction of Ord and 
Rosecrans did not take place till after the latter had had a 
desperate and only partially successful engagement with 
Price on the 19th, in front of luka. Rosecrans' troops 
fought well, but owing to the exceedingly difficult nature 
of the ground, he was not able to bring his whole com- 
mand into action. The Confederates were defeated after a 
sanguinary battle, and under cover of night retreated south- 
ward by the Fulton road. Their loss is stated by Pollard 
the historian '* at about eight hundred killed and wounded,'* 
not counting over a thousand prisoners left in the hands of 
the victors. 

On the 2 2d Grant ordered the pursuit to be discontinued, 
and directed Rosecrans to return to Corinth, where he ar- 
rived on the 26th. Ord was sent to Bolivar, and Hurlbut 
in the direction of Pocahontas. Price, by a wide circuit, 
joined Van Dorn at Ripley. The united force then moved 
in the direction of Pocahontas. 

On the 2d of October, Van Dorn and Price, with three 
divisions, advanced thence towards Corinth by the way of 
Chewalla. 

Shortly after Halleck left for Washington, Grant, seeing 
that the old works were too extensive to be held by any rea- 
sonable force, directed the construction of an inner and 
much shorter line of Intrenchments at Corinth, and by the 
time the Confederates made their appearance in front of 
these works they were sufficiently near completion to be 
used for defensive purposes. Rosecrans had withdrawn 
his outposts upon the first appearance of the enemy and 
formed his line over a mile in front of the fortifications. 
The Confederates advancing on the Chewalla road, soon 
drove in Stanley's advanced brigade, which, being sup- 
ported by another, made head for a time. But the Con- 
federates, continually developing their front, soon hotly en- 
gaged Davies' division also, and finally the entire line. 
Pushing their attack with great vigor, they finally compelled 
Rosecrans to fall back with the loss of two euns, and to 
occupy the fortifications. 

At an early hour on the morning of the 4th, the action 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. I9I 

was renewed by the Confederates, who opened upon the 
Union lines with their batteries, and at half-past nine o'clock, 
Price assaulted the Union centre with desperate determina- 
tion. A storm of canister and grape was poured upon the 
Confederate columns, but with only partial effect. Cheered 
on by their officers, they renewed the attack, now become 
general, and soon succeeded in breaking Davies' division 
and in forcing the head of their column into the town. But 
Rosecrans concentrated a heavy fire of artillery upon them, 
and pushing forward the Tenth Ohio, and Fifth Minnesota 
regiments, followed closely by Sullivan's brigade, succeeded 
in driving the Confederates beyond the works and in re- 
establishing Davies' line. In the meanwhile Van Dorn had 
formed the right of his army into column of attack, and 
under cover of a heavy skirmish line, was leading it in 
person to the assault of the Union left. But Rosecrans 
was ready on that side also. Stanley's division and the 
heavy guns of Battery Robinet, manned by the veterans 
of the First Regular infantry, made answer to the Con- 
federate musketry, and with round shot, shelly grape and 
canister, played dire havoc among the advancing troops. 
But still they held their forward course till within fifty yards 
of our national works. Here they received a deadly rifle 
fire, and after struggling bravely for a minute to face it, 
they were compelled to fall back. Again the Confederate 
leaders led their men forward, to the very ditches and para- 
pets of the defenses, but again were they bloodily repulsed; 
this time, however, to be followed by the gallant soldiers of 
Ohio and Missouri, who, seeing the enemy falter, poured 
over the works and drove them, routed and broken, back 
to the woods from which they had advanced. The battle 
had spent its fury, the Confederates were no longer able 
to make head, and lost no time in withdrawing their disor- 
ganized battalions to a place of safety. They left dead, 
upon the field, 1,420 officers and men, and more than 
5,000 wounded, besides losing 2,248 prisoners, 41 colors 
and 2 guns. The next day Rosecans, reinforced by Mc- 
pherson's brigade, began the pursuit, but he had lost 
eighteen hours arid could not regain the advantage which 



192 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

had thus escaped. The following extract from Grant's 
order of congratulation tells the rest of the story : 

The enemy chose his own time and place of attack, and knowing the 
troops of the West as he does, and with great facilities of knowing their 
numbers, never would have made the attempt, except with a superior 
force numerically. But for the undaunted bravery of officers and sol- 
diers, who have yet to learn defeat, the efforts of the enemy must have 
proven successful. 

Whilst one division of the army, under Major-General Rosecrans, was 
resisting and repelling the onslaught of the Confederate hosts at Cor- 
inth, another from Bolivar, under Major-General Hurlbut, was marching 
upon the enemy's rear, driving in their pickets and cavalry, and attract- 
ing the attention of a large force of infantry and artillery. On the 
following day, under Major-General Ord, these forces advanced with 
unsurpassed gallantry, driving the enemy back across the Hatchie, over 
ground where it is almost incredible that a superior force should be driven 
by an inferior, capturing two of the batteries, (eight guns,) many hundred 
small arms, and several hundred prisoners. 

To these two divisions of the army all praise is due, and will be 
awarded by a grateful country. 

Between them there should be, and I trust are, the warmest bonds of 
brotherhood. Each was risking life in the same cause, and, on this oc- 
casion, risking it also to save and assist the other. No troops could do 
more than these separate armies. Each did all possible for it to do in 
the places assigned it. 

As in all great battles, so in this, it becomes our fate to mourn the 
loss of many brave and faithful officers and soldiers, who have given up 
their lives as a sacrifice for a great principle. The nation mourns for 
them. 

In this campaign of fifteen days, although weakened by 
detachments sent to Buell and hampered by Imperative in- 
structions from Halleck to hold the points which had been 
garrisoned under his orders, Grant had fought and won two 
battles, against superior forces of the enemy, and had 
shown his capacity, If permitted to concentrate his forces 
and leave conquered territory to take care of itself, to as- 
sume the offensive with ample force to sweep every vestige 
of Confederate power from Mississippi. This is the only 
period in his military career when he was compelled to re- 
ceive attack rather than give It, and nothing could have 
been more galling to his feelings. 

On the 1 6th of October, 1862, General Grant's depart- 
ment was extended so as to embrace the State of Mississippi 



r«« DIAGRAMW . e,N «osrcRAMss, 

iirPOSITIQN OF ARIVii!^S_DE? 31 ^^%%gM/fr€fis\ 




^N 



D!AGRAM\ 

POSITION OF ARMIES 




^U 




BIAGKAMS SHOWING THE POSITIONS OF THE ARMIES AT THE BATTLE OF 
MURFREESBORO' OR STONE RIVER. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. T93 

as far as Vicksburg, and on assuming command he issued 
the following orders : 

Head- QUARTERS, Department of the Tennessee, 
Jackson, Tenn., October 2^th, 1862. 
[General Orders No. i.] 

I. In compliance with General Orders, No. 159, A. G. O., War De- 
partment, of date October i6th, 1862, the undersigned hereby assumes 
command of the Department of the Tennessee, which includes Cairo, Fort 
Henry and Fort Donelson, Northern Mississippi, and the portions of 
Kentucky and Tennessee west of the Tennessee river. 

II. Head-quarters of the Department of the Tennessee will remain, 
until further orders, at Jackson, Tennessee. 

III. All orders of the District of West Tennessee will continue in force 
in the department. U. S. Grant, 

Major- General commanding. 

On the 1st of November he issued a lengthy order es- 
tablishing certain important regulations in regard to the 
movements of trains, limiting the allowance of baggage 
and camp equipage, and otherwise placing his army in such 
a condition that it could move in the enemy's country with 
the greatest activity, and not be encumbered with long 
lines of wagons, as has too frequently been the case during 
the progress of the rebellion. 

A day or two before this last order was issued, a large 
body of cavalry had made a successful reconnoissance 
below Ripley, and had occupied that place and Orizaba, 
and on the 4th of November, General Grant, with several 
divisions of the army, occupied La Grange, and established 
his head-quarters there. 

On the 8th of November, 1862, he ordered a force, con- 
sisting of about ten thousand Infantry under command of 
General McPherson, and about fifteen hundred cavalry under 
Colonel Lee, to make a reconnoissance for the purpose of 
ascertaining the exact position of the enemy. Near Lamar, 
a village about tw^elve miles south of La Grange, the cavalry 
encountered the enemy's pickets, and soon afterwards a 
force of cavalry, whom, after a short skirmish, they drove 
into the hills. One portion of Colonel Lee's force was 
subsequently sent down towards Hudsonville, wJiile he him- 
13 



194 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

self, with about seven hundred of his men, attacked the 
Confederates and compelled them to retreat, leaving their 
dead and wounded in the hands of the nationals. For his 
gallant conduct on this and several previous occasions, 
Colonel Lee was recommended by General Grant for pro- 
motion. 

On the 9th of November, stringent orders were issued, 
having for their object the prevention of depredations by 
the troops, and authorizing the stoppage of the pay of en- 
tire divisions for the full amount of damages committed 
by any soldier to whom the act could not be definitely 
traced. On the nth of the month the officers of General 
Grant's staff were officially announced; on the 14th, a camp 
for the reception of fugitive slaves was established at Grand 
Junction ; two days later, one of the provisions of the 
order of the 9th was enforced, by the levy of about twelve 
hundred dollars upon the Twentieth Illinois regiment, to 
reimburse certain store-keepers for property stolen and in- 
jured by a portion of the regiment, the identity of the 
actual criminals being undiscovered; and on the 19th, an 
order was promulgated, requiring persons, before purchas- 
ing cotton or other Southern products, to have a special 
permit from the local provost-marshal ; prohibiting pur- 
chasers from going beyond the lines to trade; and granting 
licenses to loyal persons within the department to keep for 
sale to residents who have taken the oath of allegiance, 
articles " of prime necessity for families." 



CHAPTER V. 

WAR OF THE REBELLION CouthlUed, 

After the battle of Corinth — Reasons for Grant's inaction — Reinforcements — The expe- 
dition to the Yazoo — Sherman and Porter — Grant to move against Pemberton — 
Holly Springs — Van Dorn's raid — Holly Springs captured — Murphy's cowardice — 
Forrest's raid — Grant's supplies cut off— Murphy di:>missed the army — Sherman and 
Porter on their way down the Mississippi — McClernand's appointment — Sherman 
and Porter at the mouth of the Yazoo — Vicksburg — Walnut Hills — Haines' Bluff — 
Chickasaw bayou — Dangerous battle-ground — The preparations of the Confederates 
— Barfield's plantation — General Frank P. Blair — The morning of the 29th of 
November — The attack — Blair and Thayer — Their bravery — Morgan's failure — 
Morgan L. Smith wounded — Blair, Thayer, and DeCourcy compelled to fall back 
— The Sixth Missouri — Sherman mortified — Another attack resolved upon — End of 
the second campaign against Vicksburg — Reflections — Sherman's mistake — Blair 
the hero of Chickasaw bayou — Back at the mouth of the Yazoo — Arrival of Mc- 
Clernand — Sherman superseded — McClernand's General Order No, I — Arkansas 
post — At the mouth of the White river — The Arkansas river — Fort Hindman — 
Strength of the fortress — Landing of the troops — Porter and his gunboats — The 
morning of the nth of December — The guns of the fort silenced — Steele's men 
performing prodigies of valor — Morgan's advance interrupted by the ravine- 
Bravery of Burbridge — The prize of victory — McClernand's report — Liitle Rock — 
Des Arc and Duval's Bluff captured — Fort Hindman dismantled and blown up — 
The army and the flotilla at Napoleon — Instructions from Grant — Back at Milliken's 
Bend. 

After the battle of Corinth, on the 4th of October, 1862, 
the army, under General Grant, fell back to the position 
which it formerly occupied, and remained in comparative 
inactivity until the beginninor of November. It was sta- 
tioned from Memphis to Bridgeport, Tennessee, along the 
Memphis and Charleston railroad. Its strong points were 
Memphis, Grand Juncdon, and Corinth. The army was 
arranged in four divisions. Grant's head-quarters were at 
Jackson, Tennessee, a point in the West where the Central 
Mississippi railroad unites with the Mobile and Ohio. 

General Grant had not abandoned the plan which was 
inaugurated at Henry and Donelson. His whole soul was 

(195) 



196 'life of ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

bent on the capture of Vicksburg. The removal of Hal- 
leck to Washington had devolved upon him the entire care 
of the department of the Tennessee, which included, in 
addition to Cairo, Forts Henry and Donelson, the whole 
of Northern Mississippi, and those portions of Tennessee 
and Kentucky west of the Tennessee river. The army 
which had fought and won at Shiloh, at Corinth, and at 
luka, had been gready weakened, a large proportion of 
its strength havinof been sent to Kentuckv to resist the 
Invasion of Bragg. It was necessary, therefore, for Grant, 
while perfecting his plans and rearranging his troops, to 
wait for reinforcements. As soon as the reinforcements 
arrived, he was ready to move. 

The national gunboats had swept the Mississippi from 
Cairo to Memphis ; and, between those two points, every 
Confederate stronghold had been deserted or destroyed. 
Farragut, with a portion of his fleet, had pushed his way up 
to Vicksburg after the capture of New Orleans. He v/as 
accompanied by General F. Williams, widi an infantry force 
of four regiments. While Farragut bombarded the city, 
Williams was cuttinor a canal, with a view of divertino- the 
waters of the Mississippi from their proper channel, thus 
leaving Vicksburg high and dry on all sides. The siege 
lasted some seventy days. It was all to no purpose. Far- 
ragut, who failed to make any serious Impression on the 
Confederate works, began to fear for his own safety. The 
canal, also, proved a complete failure. The fleet and the 
land force both found it necessary to retire, and Vicksburg 
remained to obstruct the navigation of the great river. 

On the 4th of November Grant began to move. He 
transferred his head-quarters from Jackson to La Grange, 
some few miles to the west of Grand Junction. He soon 
discovered that the Confederates, under General John C. 
Pemberton, who had superseded Van Dorn, were in con- 
siderable strength immediately in his front. Pemberton, in 
fact, had taken a strong position behind two lines of de- 
fences, the outer belnor the Yallabuslia, and the inner being 
the Tallahatchie — two streams which, after their junction, 
form the Yazoo river. 




(^97) 



198 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

On the 8th he sent out McPherson with 10,000 infantry 
and 1,500 cavalr3^ with instructions to drive from Lamar a 
body of Confederates who were holding the railroad. Mc- 
Pherson accomplished his task in the most effectual man- 
ner, the Confederates having been driven back as far as 
Holly Springs. 

About the 17th of November Grant summoned Sherman 
to meet him at Columbus, and at the interview which there 
took place the views of the two generals were freely ex- 
changed, Grant explaining to Sherman his plan and giving 
him his orders. It was at Sherman's suor^estion that a 
portion of Curtis' army, which, as we have seen in a pre- 
vious chapter, w^as stationed at Helena, should be brought 
over to Delta, with a view to co-operate with Grant in his 
general movement towards Vicksburg. They numbered 
some 7,000 men, and were under the joint command of 
Generals A. P. Hovey and C. C. VVashburne. Ordered to 
scour the country to the south and east, in the rear of the 
Confederate army, to destroy the railroads and bridges, so 
as to cut off supplies, and generally to prepare the way for 
Grant's advance, they accomplished their task in the most 
effectual manner, and then returned to the Mississippi. 
Pemberton, on discovering that the railroads were baclly 
damaged, and that the rolling stock was destroyed, Grant 
meanwhile pressing on his front, deemed it prudent to fall 
back on Grenada. 

On the I St of December Grant was at Holly Springs, 
On the 5th he was at Oxford, w^here he established his 
head-quarters. 

On the 5th of December, Sherman on his way to join 
Grant, and bringing with him from Memphis some 16,000 
men, arrived at College Hill, about ten miles from Oxford, 
whence he reported to his chief On the 8th he received 
from Grant a letter, requesting his immediate presence at 
Oxford, and enclosing a message from Halleck to Grant, 
authorizing the latter to move his troops as he thought 
best, to retain till further orders all Curtis' troops now in 
his department, to telegraph to General Allen in St. Louis 
for all the steamboats he might need, and to ask Porter to 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 1 99 

co-operate with his gunboats. On his arrival at Oxford 
Sherman found Grant surrounded by his staff. The new 
plan was discussed and approved. It will be seen that 
Grant had made up his mind that, for the safety of his men 
as well as for the final success of the expedition, it was 
necessary to take full advantage of the river communication 
with Vicksburg. 

Grant had been left complete control of the move- 
ment, Halleck having offered no special advice and im- 
posed no conditions. Sherman, who commanded the right 
wing of Grant's army, was appointed to the command of the 
river expedition, and received his instructions. Grant de- 
sired Sherman appointed to this command in preference to 
McClernand, who had influence with the President, and was 
known to be intriguing for an independent command on 
the Mississippi. Sherman was ordered to take command 
of the forces at Memphis, and those also at Helena and 
Delta, under General Steele, to descend the river by trans- 
ports, with the gunboat fleet as a convoy, commanded by 
Admiral Porter, and to attack Vicksburg by the 29th of 
November. McClernand was to take the forces at Cairo, 
and to proceed to Vicksburg, so as to be in time to lend 
Sherman effective aid as soon as he made the attack. 
Grant himself was to move rapidly on the Confederates to 
the north and east of Vicksburg, to follow them if they 
should retreat towards the city, and to take part with 
Sherman, if necessary, in the reduction of the place. Grant 
knew that it was unsafe to trust for supplies solely to the 
enemy's country. He had, therefore, repaired the Central 
Mississippi railroad as far as Oxford, where, for the present, 
he had established his head-quarters ; and Holly Springs, 
which was entrusted to the care of Colonel R. C. Murphy, 
was retained as a grand depot and hospital. 

General Grant had taken great care that no misfortune 
should befall him in his rear. He had left small but ade- 
quate garrisons at Columbus, Humboldt, Trenton, Jackson, 
Bolivar, Corinth, Holly Springs, Coldwater, Davis' Mills 
and Middlebury. He had taken particular care of Holly 
Springs, for he knew that the treasures at that place pre- 



2CO LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

sented a powerful temptation to Van Dorn. On the night 
of the 19th he warned Murphy of his danger, and informed 
him that he had sent 4,000 men to enable him to repel any 
attack which might be made upon him. Murphy, it would 
seem, paid litde heed to the instructions given him. He 
made no extra preparations to resist the enemy. 

On the morning of the 20th, at daybreak, Van Dorn, 
executing a brilliant cavalry operation, rushed upon the 
place with tremendous fury. Murphy offered no resistance. 
The Second Illinois, however, refused to surrender, and 
gallantly fought their way out with a loss of only seven 
men. Murphy, with the rest of his men, accepted a parole. 
Van Dorn seized all the property, valued at over ^1,500,- 
000, taking with him what he could carry and destroying 
the remainder. He set fire to the buildings, not even 
sparing the hospital, which w^as filled with sick and wounded 
soldiers. This was the second time that Murphy had been 
guilty of such conduct. He did the same thing at luka. 
General Grant was wild with rage. It was his opinion that 
with "all the cotton, public stores, and substantial buildings 
about the depot," Murphy ought to have been able to keep 
the assailants at bay until relief arrived. It was only four 
hours after the catastrophe when the 4,000 men sent to his 
aid arrived on the spot. Grant was particularly incensed 
at Murphy for accepting a parole for himself and his men. 
A cartel had been agreed to by the rival commanders ; and 
it had been sdpulated that each party should take care of 
his own prisoners. If Murphy had refused parole for him- 
self and men. Van Dorn would have been *' compelled to 
release them uncondidonally, or to have abandoned all 
further aggressive movements for the time being." In a 
severe order, on the 9th of January, General Grant dis- 
missed Murphy from the army, the order to take effect 
'• from December 20th, the date of his cowardly and dis- 
graceful conduct." 

. On the same day that Van Dorn made his raid on Holly 
Springs, an attack was made by a Confederate force on 
Davis' Mills, a litde farther to the north. In the neighbor- 
hood of Jackson, Tennessee, a vital point '^ Grant's line 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 20I 

of communications, an attack was made by a body of cav- 
alry, under Forrest, on the 19th. 

General Grant's plan of the campaign had failed. On 
the 20th, the very day on which Van Dorn and Forrest 
struck the blow which compelled Grant to fall back and 
abandon his part of the joint undertaking, Sherman took 
his departure from Memphis. Taking with him over 
20,000 troops in transports, he left, as a guard to the city, a 
strong force of infantry and cavalry, and the siege guns in 
position, with a complement of gunners. On the following 
day, at Friar's Point, he was joined by Admiral Porter, in 
his flag-ship, " Black Hawk," with the " Marmora," Captain 
Getty, and the " Conestoga," Captain Selfridge, which were 
to act as a convoy. The remainder of Porter's fleet was 
at the mouth of the Yazoo. On the same evening, the 
2 1 St, the troops at Helena embarked in transports and 
came to Friar's Point. Sherman's force was now at least 
30,000 strong. All the arrangements werq. completed, and 
the joint expedition was moving down the river the fol- 
lowing morning. 

On the 18th of December an order from the President 
reached Grant, directing him to divide all his forces into 
four army corps, to assign one corps to McClernand, and 
to place him at the head of the troops destined for the at- 
tack upon VIcksburg. Grant could hardly fail to see in 
this order a blow aimed at himself. It is not much to be 
wondered at if Grant was staggered by this order, and if 
he was slow to put it in execution. He was in the midst 
of his preparations for an onward march. The reconstruc- 
tion of his army, according to the instructions received, oc- 
cupied him the whole of the 19th. The disaster at Holly 
Springs, compelling a backward movement, occurred on 
the 20th, and the raids of Forrest on the same day de- 
prived him of the use of the telegraph. As it was, Sher- 
man had proceeded down the river before any counter-in- 
strucdons reached Memphis. If Sherman had any reason 
to fear a counter-order, his haste to get ready and his 
prompt departure but revealed the soldierly spirit and true 
character of the man. As the result proved, it was well 



202 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

lor Sherman, well for General Grant, and well for the na- 
tion at laree that Lincoln's order did not take effect before 
the 20th of December. 

On Christmas day the expedition under Sherman and 
Porter had reached Milliken's Bend, when Sherman de- 
tached Burbridge's brigade, of A. J. Smith's division, to 
break up the railroad leading from Vicksburg to Shreve- 
port, Louisiana. Leaving A. J. Smith's division to await 
the arrival, the remaining divisions proceeded, on the 26th, 
io the mouth of the Yazoo, and up that river to Johnson's 
plantation, some thirteen miles, and there disembarked. 
The disembarkation was conducted without any opposition. 
Steele's division landed farthest up the river, above what 
is called Chickasaw Bayou ; Morgan's division a litde lower 
down, at the house of Johnson, which had been burned by 
the gunboats on a former occasion ; Morgan L. Smith's di- 
vision below that of Morgan ; and A. J. Smith's, which ar- 
rived next night, below that of M. L. Smith. The ground 
on which Sherman now found himself presented obstacles 
of which formerly he had but a very imperfect conception. 
Vicksburg is built on a range of bluffs known as the 
Walnut Hills. These hills, which take their rise a little be- 
low the city, extend for the most part in a northeasterly 
direcdon, terminadng in Haines' Bluff, a distance of some 
thirteen or fourteen miles. The configuradon of these 
hills has been compared to the ridge at Inkerman, to which, 
it is said, they bear, in some pardculars, a striking resem- 
blance. Their average height is about two hundred feet. 
Where the Mississippi touches their base at Vicksburg, and 
for some miles both above and below, they are precipitous. 
Along their entire length, indeed, from Vicksburg to 
Haines' Bluff, their face is very abrupt, and cut up by nu- 
merous valleys and ravines. The only approach to the 
city by land from up the river is by climbing their almost 
perpendicular front. The ground beyond is high, broken, 
and somewhat rolling, gradually descending to the Big 
Black river. The Yazoo, which skirts the ridge at Haines' 
Bluff, al)out nine miles above Vicksburg by the road, along 
the foot of the bluffs, flows in a southwestern direction, and 




'^ \sCA/.r ff'^M/LCS 



iCKSBURG AND PORT HUDSON-SCENE OF GRANT'S GREAT VICTORY. 



204 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

before discharging its waters into the Mississippi crosses 
an old arm of the river, which now forms a semicircular 
lake. 

The Yazoo evidently, in times gone by, clung to the foot 
of the hills, and traces of its former whereabouts are to be 
seen in the numerous bayous and channels by which the 
intervening ground is cut up. One of these bayous puts 
off from the Yazoo about one-third of the distance below 
Haines' Bluff, running at right angles with the river until 
it approaches the bluffs, when it turns and follows their 
base until it empties itself into the Mississippi. It is called 
Chickasaw Bayou. Between the bayou and the hills there 
was an irregular strip of land, on which the trees had been 
felled to form an abatis. It was dotted also with rifle-pits. 
Rifle-trenches abounded, too, along the front of the bluffs, 
and the heights above were crowned with batteries. About 
a mile to the northeast of the bayou, and parallel with it, 
there is a deep slough, which makes a sharp turn as it ap- 
proaches the bluffs, and enters Chickasaw Bayou at the 
point where the latter is checked in its course, and turns to 
flow along the base of the hills. There was thus a fortihed 
line some twelve or thirteen miles in lenor-di formed of 
abatis and rifle-pits, with an impassable ditch in front, and 
terminating in the powerful fixed batteries at Haines' Blufl' 
on the one hand, and in the heavy batteries and field-works 
above Vicksburg on the other. The land lying between 
the Yazoo and the Chickasaw was not only low and 
swampy, it was, except in one or two places where there 
were plantations, densely wooded. The distance from 
Johnson's Landing to the Chickasaw was about six miles. 

General Sherman's army was organized in four divisions. 
The first division, comprising three brigades, was under 
Brigadier-General George W. Morgan ; second division, 
three brigades, under Brigadier-General Morgan L. Smith; 
third division, three briorades, under Brioradier-General A. J. 
Smith; fourth division, four brigades, under Brigadier- 
General Frederick Steele. The brigade commanders oi 
the fourth division were Generals Frank P. Blair, John M. 
Thayer, C. E. Hovey, and Colonel Hassendeubel. Ac- 




(205) 



2o6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

cording to Sherman's plan of attack General Steele was to 
hold the extreme left, General Morgan the left centre, Gen- 
eral M. L. Smith the right centre, and General A. J. Smith 
the extreme right. As the latter general had not yet ar- 
rived from Milliken's Bend, where we left him waiting for 
Burbridge, General Frank P. Blair, with his brigade, was 
detached from Steele's division and placed on Morgan's 
right. 

On the 27th the army began to move. General Steele, 
who had been ordered to take position on the farther side 
of the slough above this bayou, experienced great difficulty 
in landing his troops. On the 27th Blair moved slowly to- 
wards the bluffs, his desire being to give Steele time^ to 
come into position on the left. He succeeded in silencing 
one of the enemy's batteries at the point where he expected 
Steele would be able to join him, and held his ground. 

On the 28th the various divisions pressed forward, and 
the national troops were in full possession on the Yazoo 
side of the bayou, with one bridge thrown across and with 
two bridges partially constructed. During the course of 
the day, while reconnoitering. General M. L. Smith was se- 
verely wounded in the hip and compelled to retire to his 
steamboat. 

On the morning of the 29th all things were in readiness 
for the attack. It was Sherman's object to make a lodge- 
ment on the foot-hills and bluffs abreast of his position, 
while diversions were being made by the navy at Haines' 
Bluff, and by the first division direcdy towards Vicksburg. 
An attempt was made by A. J. Smith to throw a light-flying 
bridge over the bayou more to the right. Sherman ex- 
pected great things from General Morgan, who, as we have 
seen, commanded the first division, and was to lead the at- 
tack in person. Sherman pointed out to him the place 
where he could pass the bayou, and received for answer: 
"General, in ten minutes after you give the signal, I'll be 
on those hills." His position was one of considerable diffi- 
culty. The crossing was narrow, and immediately opposite, 
at the base of the hills, there was a Confederate battery, 
supported by infantry, posted on the spurs of the hills in 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 207 

the rear. This was the real point of attack, but to distract 
the attention of the enemy, Sherman's Instructions were 
that the Initial movements should be made at the flanks. 

It was about noon before the signal was given for a gen- 
eral forward movement across the bayou and towards the 
enemy's position. A heavy artillery fire was opened all 
along the national line. It recalled the memory of luka 
and Corinth. The Confederate batteries made a prompt 
reply, and were soon followed by the Infantry, which opened 
a perfect tempest of lead on the advance ranks of Morgan 
and A. J. Smith. In the midst of this fierce storm of can- 
non-shot and musketry De Courcy's brigade, of Morgan's 
division, succeeded In crossing the bayou ; but so terrific 
was the fire that they took to cover behind the bank, and 
could not be moved forward. General Blair, meanwhile, 
had crossed the bayou by the bridge above the angle, and 
had reached the slough, the bottom of which was quicksand, 
and the banks of wdilch were covered with felled trees. 
With great difficulty, and not undl his ranks w^ere thrown 
into some disorder, was the crossing of the slough accom- 
plished. This done, it was necessary before reaching the 
enemy's w^orks to traverse a sloping plateau, raked by a 
direct and enfilading fire from heavy artillery, and swept by 
a storm of bullets from the rifle-pits. Nothing daunted, 
Blair and his brave brigade went bounding across the 
plateau. Rushing upon the rifle-pits, they captured the 
first line and then the second, and made a desperate effort 
to ealn the crest of the hill on which the batteries were 
planted. 

Colonel Thayer, of Steele's division, had followed Blair 
with his brigade over the same bridge. Entering the 
abatis at the same point, he turned somewhat to the right, 
and emerged upon the plateau almost simultaneously with 
Blair, and about two hundred yards to his right. Unfortu- 
nately, however, Thayer found that he was followed by 
only one regiment: his second regiment, after his move- 
ment had commenced, having been ordered to the support 
of Morgan, and the other two regiments having followed 
this one by mistake. Thayer discovered the mistake before 



208 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

he had fairly brought his troops Into action, but he was too 
brave a man to halt or hesitate In the circumstances. On 
he pushed to the right of Blair, and rendered effective aid 
in the capture of the second line of rifle-pits. Leaving his 
regiment to hold the position it had won, he hurried back, 
with Blair's consent, to obtain reinforcements. The mo- 
ments seemed hours. " It was a struggle," as has been 
well said, "between three thousand In the open ground 
below and ten thousand behind intrenchments above." 
The hillsides bristled with bayonets and blazed with the 
fire of musketry, while from the angry mouths of huge 
cannon destruction was poured forth upon the shattered 
and rapidly thinning ranks of the assailants. Blair, impa- 
tient for the return of Thayer, rushed back himself to per- 
suade the advance of more troops. It was all In vain. 
Both Thayer and himself failed in obtaining reinforcements. 
No help reached them. ; no diversion was made In their 
favor. They had no choice but to order a retreat. Blair 
and Thayer fell back with a loss of at least one-third of 
their men ; and De Courcy, who had been attacked on the 
flank by the Seventeenth and Twenty-Sixth Louisiana, lost 
four flags, three hundred and thirty-two men made pris- 
oners, and about five hundred small arms. 

The attack was a complete failure. Somehow the signal 
for attack was imperfectly understood. Stuart had managed 
to push across one regiment, the Sixth Missouri, which had 
orders to undermine the bluff The position of those men 
was one which severely tried their faith and patience. 
They were exposed to the vertical fire of the Confederate 
sharpshooters who occupied the ridge, and a batallion of 
the Thirteenth regulars, who were stationed opposite, and 
who attempted to protect them from the Confederate fire, 
proved equally dangerous with the enemy above. "Shoot 
higher!" shouted the nationals below the bluff "Shoot 
lower! " cried the Confederates. After dark this regiment 
was brought back over the bayou. The remainder of 
Steele's division did not get up in time to be of any assist- 
ance to Blair. Morgan failed to make good his promise, 
He did not even obey his orders. General Sherman was 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 209 

particularly severe on Morgan. To him and to his conduct 
he attributed the failure of the attack. 

Sherman resolved to make another attack, and arrange- 
ments were made to push forward General Hovey to the 
position from which Blair had been driven ; Morgan's di- 
vision, with the brigades of Blair and Thayer, to follow and 
support. For some reason it was not done, and next 
morning it was found to be impossible, because of the in- 
creased strength of the Confederates at the menaced point. 
Firing was continued on both sides during Tuesday ; and 
on Wednesday, the 31st, a flag of truce was sent in, and 
the dead were buried and the wounded cared for. 

Sherman was still dissatisfied, and resolved to make 
another attack. After consulting with Admiral Porter it 
was agreed that a combined naval and land assault should 
be made on Haines' Bluff, the key of the Confederate po- 
sition. Porter was to proceed up the Yazoo with his gun- 
boats and open fire on the bluffs, while General Steele was 
to land his division out of range of the enemy's guns, then 
to push forward and take the posidon by storm. The at- 
tack was to be made during the dark hours. By two 
o'clock on the morning of Thursday, the ist of January, 
1863, the necessary arrangements were completed. A 
heavy fog, however, had enveloped the entire district, and 
so dense was it that Porter found it impossible to steer the 
boats. It was utterly out of the question to make any fur- 
ther efforts. On the night of the 29th of December there^ 
had been a tremendous rain-storm ; all the low ground was. 
flooded, and the men, who had been bivouacking for five 
successive days in those wretched swamps without fire, 
were suffering cruelly from damp and cold. On the 2d of 
January Sherman placed his troops on board the transports, 
and the fleet sailed down to the mouth of the Yazoo. Thus 
ended somewhat ingloriously the second campaign against 
Vicksburg. Sherman had accomplished nothing. He had, 
however, made great sacrifices ; his loss in killed and 
wounded and prisoners amounting to nearly 2,000 men. 
Such was the batde of Chickasaw Bayou, or,, as it is some- 
times named, the battle of Haines* Bluff. 
14 



2IO LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

The Confederates were jubilant after this first victory. 
It was undoubtedly a great triumph. General Peniberton, 
not without reason, felt proud that he had baffled Grant In 
person, compelling him to retreat, and that he had tem- 
porarily, at least, saved VIcksburg by the defeat of the 
greatest of Grant's lieutenants. These rejoicings in the 
South were not unmixed with sorrow. The more thought- 
ful of the Confederates knew that defeat only intensified 
the purpose of the North. VIcksburg had not yet fallen ; 
but VIcksburg, they felt, was doomed. 

At the mouth of the Yazoo General McClernand was 
waiting with orders from the War Department to take 
command of the entire expedition. That general, it will 
be remembered, was appointed to this command by the 
direct Influence of President Lincoln. With a modesty 
which became a man of his high spirit, Sherman accepted 
the situation, and explained to McClernand what had been 
done, accepting the entire responsibility of the failure. 
Referring to the trains of cars which could be heard com- 
ing into VIcksburg almost every hour, and the fresh troops 
seen on the bluffs, he gave It as his opinion that Pember- 
ton's army must have been pressed back, and that Grant 
must be at hand. He then learned, for the first time, what 
had befallen Grant ; McClernand stating that Grant was 
not coming at all, that the depot at Holly Springs had 
been captured by Van Dorn, that Grant had fallen back 
from Coffeeville and Oxford to Holly Springs and La 
Grange, and that when he passed down, Ouimby's division, 
of Grant's army, was actually at Memphis for stores. By 
common consent, all further attempts against VIcksburg 
for the present were abandoned ; and the entire force left 
the Yazoo and retired to Milllken's Bend on the Mis- 
sissippi. 

On the 4th of January McClernand issued his General 
Order No. i, assuming command of what was to be called 
the Army of the Mississippi, and, following the plan which 
had been agreed upon at Washington, and which had been 
adopted in the armies of the East, divided his forces into 
two corps. The first was to be commanded by General 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 2 1 I 

Morgan, and was to be composed of his own and A. J. 
Smith's divisions ; and the second, to consist of Steele's 
and Stuart's divisions, was to be commanded by Sherman. 
The rest of the Army of the Tennessee was similarly di- 
vided, Hurlbut being placed in command of one corps, 
and McPherson in command of the other. The supreme 
command of these four corps was retained by Grant. 

Before the arrival of McClernand, Sherman and Porter 
had agreed upon a plan for the reduction of Fort Hind- 
man, or, as it was called, Arkansas Post. About forty or 
forty-five miles from the mouth of the Arkansas there is a 
piece of elevated ground, the first high land on the banks 
of the river after leaving the Mississippi. At this point 
the river makes a sharp bend. Here the French had a 
trading-post and a setdement as far back as 1685. The 
Confederates had taken advantage of the place to erect 
some fortificadons, the principal work being named Fort 
Hindman, after the famous guerrilla chief. Behind these 
works, they kept several steamboats, which were wont to 
sweep down the river and intercept supplies. Sherman 
had experienced some inconvenience from the existence of 
this stronghold. He had left Memphis in such haste that 
he had not been able to take with him a sufficient supply 
of ammunition for his guns. The " Blue Wing," a small 
steamer carrying a mail, towing some coal barges, and 
having with her the necessary supplies, had been sent after 
him. This boat had been pounced upon at the mouth of 
the Arkansas, captured and, with all her supplies, taken up 
to Fort Hindman. It was Sherman's convicdon, from the 
moment he learned of the fate of the *' Blue Wing," that 
before any operation could be successfully conducted 
against Vicksburg by way of the Mississippi, it would be 
necessary to reduce Fort Hindman, and make an end of 
the Arkansas pirates. Sherman communicated his pur- 
pose to McClernand, and asked permission to go up the 
Arkansas and clear out the post. It w^as Sherman's ex- 
pectation that he would be sent, with his own corps, alone 
on this business ; but McClernand concluded to go himself, 
and to take with him his whole force. 



212 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

The troops, which had not yet disembarked from the 
transports, were ordered to remain on board. Sherman's 
corps was In two divisions. The first, which consisted of 
three brigades, commanded respectively by Blair, Hovey 
and Thayer, was under Brigadier-General Frederick Steele. 
The second, which consisted of two brigades, commanded 
by Colonels G. A. Smith and T. Kirby Smith, was under 
Brigadier-General Stuart. The transports with the troops 
on board, convoyed by the gunboats, of which three were 
iron-clads, proceeded up the Mississippi. The force under 
McClernand amounted to some 26,000 or 27,000 men, 
comprising forty regiments of infantry, ten batteries with 
several guns of heavy calibre, and about 1,500 horse. On 
the 8th of January the expedition was at the mouth of the 
White river. On the morning of the 9th of January the 
expedition, having ascended the White river, had reached 
the mouth of the *' cut-off." There was no delay in making 
the passage through to the Arkansas, a distance of about 
eight miles. Steaming up the Arkansas, the boats reached 
Notrib's Farm, about four miles below Fort Hindman, 
shortly after four o'clock In the afternoon. Here they 
halted ; and during the night the artillery and wagons were 
got on shore, the troops disembarking in the morning. 
Arkansas Post is on the north side or left bank of the Ar- 
kansas, at a point where the river makes a sharp elbow by 
flowing north, then east, then again abrupdy to the south. 
The principal work, as we have said, was Fort Hindman. 
Its orinis commanded the river as It stretched to the east 
and after It bent toward the south. This fort was a regu- 
lar square-bastloned work, one hundred yards each exte- 
rior side, with a deep ditch about fifteen feet wide, and a 
parapet eighteen feet high. It was armed with twelve 
guns, two of which were eight-Inch and one nine-inch. 
The garrison, which numbered only 5,000 men, was under 
the command of General T. J. Churchill, who was under 
the direction of General T. H. Holmes, then commanding 
at Litde Rock. Churchill had received Instructions to 
"hold on until help should arrive or all were dead." 

The disparity of forces was great. It was 26,000 or 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 21 3 

27,000 against 5,000. The strong position held by the 
Confederates, however, did much to compensate for infe- 
riority of numbers. The fort itself was strong; and its ap- 
proaches were of the most difficult description. Fronting 
on the river, it was protected on the west by a bayou, on 
the east by a swamp which did not quite reach the edge 
of the water. Between the fort and the swamp there was 
a ravine which stretched down to the river ; and the front 
of this ravine was well fortified. The position had thus to 
be approached through the elevated ground which lay 
between the bayou and the swamp. The encampments of 
the Confederates were established in front of the fort, in 
the centre of the plateau dotted with clumps of trees. 
There was an outer line of intrenchments which stretched 
across the entire ground. 

On the loth of January, the army was kept busy en- 
deavoring to get a position in rear of the fort, Sherman on 
the right and Morgan on the left. Some mistakes were 
made, in consequence of a want of knowledge of the 
ground. In the afternoon, and while the land forces were 
still seeking position, Porter was making good use of his 
flotilla. As he moved up the river, he shelled the rifle-pits 
along the levee, and drove the Confederates inside the fort. 
When about four hundred yards from Fort Hindman, he 
brought into action his three iron-clads — the Baron de 
Kalb, the Louisville and the Cincinnati ; and for half an 
hour the firing was kept up, the guns of the fort replying 
vigorously. 

On the morning of the nth McClernand, who had his 
quarters still on board the Tigress, had come up and taken 
a position in the woods to the rear. Early in the forenoon, 
he sent a message to Sherman, asking him why the attack 
was not begun. It had been understood beforehand that 
the opening of fire by the gunboats on the fort should be 
the signal tor a general attack. Sherman replied that all 
was ready; that he was within five or six hundred yards of 
the enemy's works ; that the next movement must be a 
direct assault along the whole line; and that he was wait- 
ino- to hear from the orunboats. Half an hour or thereabout 



214 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

afterwards was heard the clear, ringing sound of the navy 
guns, the firing becoming louder and more rapid as they 
neared the fort. The national field-pieces opened fire along 
the whole line. The thunder was terrific. The Confeder- 
ates, most of whom were Texan volunteers, made a gallant 
resistance. A regiment of cavalry, abandoning their horses, 
fought on foot, and rendered, for a time, effective service in 
resisting the advance of the nationals. It was impossible 
for them to resist the fierce onset made by overwhelming 
numbers. Sherman pressed forward on the right, Morgan 
on the left, each driving the Confederates back, and gradu- 
ally obtaining possession of the vi^ooded ground in front of 
the newly-erected parapet, but not without considerable 
loss. The Confederate firing was heavy ; but the national 
soldiers took advantage of the clumps of trees, and felled 
logs to shield themselves from the storm of bullets. Gradu- 
ally the edge of the woods was reached ; the ground was 
clear ; and there was nothing to protect them from the 
decimating fire of the enemy. 

Meanwhile, the gunboats were pouring a murderous fire 
upon the fort, and sweeping the adjoining ground above 
and below with grape and shrapnell. Porter had brought 
Into action not only the ironclads, but the ram Monarch, 
Commander Ellet, and even the frailer vessels, as he tells 
us, that amid the clouds of smoke they might "do the best 
they could." It was not long until the effects of this terri- 
fic firing began to be visible. All the adjoining ground 
was cleared of the foe; nearly all the ardllery horses in the 
fort were killed; and one by one the guns were being 
silenced. Shordy after three o'clock the firing from the 
fort altogether ceased. The cannonading, however, was 
kept up by the gunboats. Porter, who had taken a regi- 
ment on board, was proceeding with the Black Hawk to 
attempt a landing, and to take possession, when a white 
flag was raised In token of surrender. He Immediately 
ordered the firing to cease. 

He left the troops In the clearing at the edge of the 
woods, fully exposed to the enemy's fire from the parapet 
outside the fort. This line had three sections of field- 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 21 5 

guns ; and they were handled, according to the testimony 
of Sherman hunself, with great skill and energy. Hovey 
was wounded ; Thayer had his horse shot under him ; and 
so thick and fast was the round-shot falling about Sherman 
and his staff, that they felt it necessary to scatter, Sherman 
himself dismounting. Morgan, at this crisis, unfortunately 
found himself in front of the ravine, beyond which it was 
impossible to pass. Sherman was now well engaged on 
the right ; and Morgan, finding himself thus hindered, sent 
a few regiments to his aid. The burden of the fight, as at 
Chickasaw, had fallen on the brigades which now composed 
the division of General Steele. Blair and Thayer and 
Hovey performed prodigies of valor. 

On the right, the Confederate batteries had been all but 
silenced. Morgan's men, on the left, had done splendid 
work before they were brought to a standstill at the ravine. 
A. J. Smith's brigades had pressed the Confederates back, 
step by step, until they were within two hundred yards of 
the fort. Burbridge expressly distinguished himself. But 
for the ravine, an attempt would have been made by the 
One Hundred and Twentieth Ohio to scale, and carry by 
assault, the eastern side of the fort. Almost at this 
moment, however, Slierman, as his attention was arrested 
by the flags of the gunboats visible above the parapet of 
Fort Hindman, saw a man jump on the nearer parapet at 
the point where entered the road which divided the penin- 
sula. " Cease firing ! " he ordered ; and the words were 
passed along the line with amazing rapidity. The firing 
soon ceased. In a few seconds the fort was invaded on 
every side by the national troops. Colonel Dayton was 
ordered forward to the place where was hung out the large 
white flag ; and as soon as his horse was seen on the para- 
pet, Sherman advanced with his staff It appeared after- 
wards that the white flag was hung out without even the 
knowledge of Churchill. It made litde difference. The 
battle had really been won on the land as well as on the 
river side of the fort. The surrender was subsequently 
made in due form — Colonel Dunnington, the commander 
of the fort, surrendering to Admiral Porter, and Colonel 



21 6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Churchill surrendering to the military authorities. The 
national loss in killed, wounded and missing amounted to 
977 men. On the Confederate side there were only sixty 
killed and eighty wounded. Five thousand soldiers, with 
their officers, made prisoners, and all the property of the 
place, including some seventeen guns, constituted the prize 
of victory. General Burbridge was singled out for the 
honor of planting the national standard on Fort Hindman. 
Such was the battle of Arkansas Post. 



CHAPTER VI. 

WAR OF THE REBELLION — Continued, 

The Proclamation of Emancipation — A turning-point in history — " Vicksburg must be 
taken"— Grant at Young's Point— The Wahiut Hills— The Yazoo— Haines' Bluff 
— Lake Providence — Grant disappointed, but not discouraged — Sherman's opinion 
— Grant's resolve — The new movement commenced — New Carthage — A tedious 
and difficult march — Grierson's raid — Grand Gulf— The gunboats open fire — The 
place too strong — Rodney — Bruinsburg — A landing effected — A useful diversion — 
Sherman at Haines' Bluff— Safe on the east side — Grant's self-reliance— Port Gib- 
son — The battle — The Confederates fall back — Hankinson's Ferry — " The City of 
an Hundred Hills" — Jackson evacuated — Grant marches against Pemberlon — 
Pemberton prepares for battle — Arrival of the National advance — The battle of 
Champion Hills begun — Logan's success — The battle won after a terrible struggle 
— McClernand too late — McClernand and Osterhaus ordered in pursuit— The Big 
Black river — The burning of the bridges — The bridges reconstructed— On to 
Vicksburg — Porter on the Yazoo— Sherman at Haines' Bluff— The fall of Vicks- 
burg secured — Pemberton's situation — The assault of the 19th of May — A failure — 
The assault of the*22d — Grant's reasons for avoiding further delay — Terrible 
fighting — The bravery of the defenders — Grant resolves to take the place by a regu- 
lar siege — Reinforcements — The investment completed — Siege operations com- 
menced — Pemberton's situation becoming desperate — Pemberton's vacillation — 
Distress of the garrison — The mining operations well advanced — The 25111 of 
June — The first mine fired — The storming columns — The assault on Fort Hill — A 
terrific cannonade — A repulse — The 1st of July — The destruction of the Redan — 
An intercepted letter — Promised aid to Pemberton — Grant's instructions to Sher- 
man—The 3d of July— The white flag— General Bowen and Colonel Montgomery 
— A letter from Pemberton — He asks for an armistice and the appointment of com- 
missioners — Grant refuses — "Unconditional surrender" — The interview between 
Grant and Pemberton— Under the old oak, in view of both armies — The surrender 
— The Fourth of July— A great triumph for Grant — The first soldier of the Repub- 
lic — The results of the campaign. 

The openlnor of the year 1863 was made memorable by 
the Proclamation of Emancipation. One of the immediate 
results of this proclamation of emancipation was the orcrani- 
zation of colored troops. Towards the close of 1863 there 
were some fifty thousand colored men in actual service ; 

(217) 



2l8 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



and this number was tripled before the close of 1864. It 
was not, however, for some time to come that their Influ- 
ence on the field began to be felt. During the year 1863, 
although colored troops, as we shall see, took part at the 
siege of Port Hudson, and in other engagements, their 
effect was comparatively unimportant. The Introduction 
of colored men into the army was regarded by many In the 
liorht of a fresh revolution. 




PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 

The situation was now ripe for the vigorous prosecu- 
tion of the siege of VIcksburg. The popular cry was '' On 
to VIcksburg!" and Grant's emphatic dictum was "VIcks- 
burg must be taken." The army under General Grant had 
been greatly reinforced ; and the general feeling was that 
if the "Queen City of the Bluff" was to be reduced, It was 
to be done by the hero of Donelson and Shiloh, of luka and 
Corinth. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 2I9 

Grant was to meet McClernand and Porter, with the 
fleet and transports, at MilHken's Bend. On the i8th of 
January, that meeting took place. McClernand and Sher- 
man made immediate p)reparations to go down the Missis- 
sippi to Young's Point; and Grant, without delay, returned 
to Memphis, in order to hasten the transportation of his 
troops to the neighborhood of Vicksburg. McClernand 
assumed command of what was named the Army of the 
Mississippi, after the battle of the Chickasaw, by virtue of 
a confidential order from the War Department. In this 
capacity, however, he was subject to orders from General 
Grant, who was at the head of the Department of the Ten- 
nessee. By an order of December i8th, 1862, from the 
War Department, the Western armies had been grouped 
into five corps, viz. : the Thirteenth, Major-General Mc- 
Clernand ; the Fourteenth, Major-General George H. 
Thomas, in Middle Tennessee ; the Fifteenth, Major-Gen- 
eral W. T. Sherman; the Sixteenth, Major-General Hurl- 
but, at Memphis; and the Seventeenth, Major General 
McPherson, back of Memphis. This entire force was 
placed under the control of General Grant. On the 2d of 
February, 1863, the greater number of the troops intended 
to be used in the operations against Vicksburg having 
already reached their destination. Grant arrived at Young's 
Point, and took command. 

The failure of one plan never discouraged Grant. He 
had not been successful In the first movements against 
Vicksburg, but that was simply an incentive to make an- 
other effort. The same spirit which he had manifested at 
Belmont when he was surrounded, at Donelson when his 
right was repulsed, at Shiloh when his whole army was 
driven back two miles, animated him still. The very day 
that his communications were cut at Holly Springs, he be- 
gan his preparations for* the campaign on the Mississippi. 
Vicksburg was the great stronghold of rebellion at the 
West. It barred and commanded the great river; when It 
fell, the Mississippi would be opened. As long as it stood, 
the strenorth of the insurofents was defiant; the Northwest 
was cut off from the sea. The Confederates threw im- 



2 20 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

mense bodies of troops Into the State of Mississippi', to 
defend and to cover the town ; they sent their best gener- 
als to command these troops ; they boldly proclaimed 
Vicksburg to be impregnable. 

The town stands on the eastern bank of the Mississippi, 
about nine miles south of the mouth of the Yazoo. Both 
rivers are circuitous in a remarkable degree. The Missis- 
sippi turns and winds so that It runs toward every point 
of the compass within a distance of twenty miles. Just 
below the mouth of the Yazoo one of the most extraordi- 
nary of these bends occurs, the river running first south- 
east, then northeast, and then with a sudden curve turning 
to the southwest. Vicksburg is situated just south of this 
last bend, on a long line of bluffs that stretches from the 
Yazoo southwest for fifty miles. These hills rise several 
hundred feet above the level of the stream, and reach two 
or three miles Into the Interior. They are extremely 
rugged and precipitous, particularly towards the river, so 
that the streets in Vicksburg are built in terraces one above 
the other, to the summit of the ridge. The entire country 
on both banks of the Mississippi, outside of this narrow 
line of hills. Is one great marsh, thickly overgrown with un- 
derbrush and forest trees, and Intersected with innumerable 
shallow streams, a region about as unfit for offensive 
military operations as it Is possible to conceive. This 
country was now completely fiooded by the great rise in 
the Mississippi, and the water stood to the depth of several 
feet, everywhere except on the bluffs, and along the narrow 
artificial banks called levees, erected by the inhabitants to 
protect their lands from the annual Inundation. This year 
the deluore was irreater than had been known for many 
seasons. 

The works reached south from the Yazoo to a point on 
the Mississippi called Warrenton, a distance of twenty 
miles. They were defended on the water side by twenty- 
eight guns, which commanded all approach by the river. 
Every effort had been made to strengthen the fortifications. 
Nature herself had done her best to render Vicksburg im- 
pregnable ; these abrupt hills overlooking a flat country for 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 221 

miles, the country submerged In water, a great river Imme- 
dlatelv in front of the ridore, were In themselves extraordi- 
nary obstacles; but when to these were added an army of 
sixty tliousand men, either in the town or in the region 
covering it, and all available for its defence ; rifle-pits, for- 
midable forts, obstructions in the river, and an armament 
of over two hundred cannon, the difficulties In the way of 
Grant seemed almost Insurmountable. To oppose them he 
had a force at this time of about fifty thousand troops. 
Admiral Porter's co-operating fleet of gunboats numbered 
sixty vessels of all classes, carrying two hundred and 
eighty guns. Not half of these, however, were retained 
near Vicksburg; the others were occupied In patrolling the 
river to Cairo, a distance of over six hundred miles. 

Grant's first business was to get a footing on the eastern 
bank of the river, where his troops could be established on 
dry land ; but the Confederates held every foot of tenable 
ground, and It was Impossible to attack them in front with 
any chance of success. The gunboats could be of no as- 
sistance, for the enemy had a plunging fire, and could rake 
the river In every direction, and transports could not ap- 
proach close enough to land troops, as a single shot might 
sink a steamer with her whole freight of soldiers. A land- 
ing had already been tried by Sherman on the Yazoo, 
twelve miles above the town, where the line of bluffs strikes 
that river at Haines' Bluff; but though conducted with 
skill and gallantry, It had signally failed In January, so that 
it seemed as If Grant's ordinary strategy of direct and bold 
attack must now be abandoned. 

First of all it was determined to diof a canal across the 
peninsula formed by the bend In the river In front of Vicks- 
burg. The land on the opposite side runs out In the shape 
of a tongue not more than a mile or two across ; the plan 
was to cut throucrh this, and let the waters of the Missis- 
sippi In, so far from the town that transports could pass 
through this artificial channel Into the river below Vicks- 
burg, and land troops on the south side of the city. The 
engineers hoped that the whole course of the river might 
be diverted from its usual direction by this canal, or at 



2 22 LIFE OF ULVSSES S. GRANT. 

least that sufficient water could be induced to run through 
to float vessels of draught sufficient for Grant's purposes. 

Accordingly, for two months thousands of soldiers and 
neo'roes were at work digging, in full sight of the besieged 
city. The troops were encamped all along the west bank 
of the river immediately behind the levees. Their tents 
were frequently submerged by the water, which yet showed 
no appearance or promise of subsidence, and disease made 
sad havoc among the soldiers. The tedious work, how- 
ever, was prosecuted till the 8th of March, the canal was al- 
most complete, when an additional and rapid rise in the 
river broke the dam near the upper end of the canal, and 
an irresistible torrent poured over the whole peninsula, 
broke the levee, submerged all the camps, and spread for 
miles into the interior. The troops had to flee for their 
lives. Futile attempts were immediately made to repair 
the damage, but on the 27th of March the plan was finally 
abandoned, it being ascertained that the Confederates had 
erected new batteries, which would completely command 
the southern exit from the canal, and had even already 
driven out the dredo^e-boats working there. 

While this stupendous endeavor to convert one of the 
natural features of the continent into an engine of war was 
being prosecuted. Grant was directing still another attempt, 
if possible more Titanic than the other. Seventy miles 
above Vicksburg, on the west side of the Mississippi, is an 
inland lake, formed by the old bed of the river, and a mile 
distant from the present channel. This is named Lake 
Providence, and is connected with various streams, or 
bayous as they are called in that region, which in their turn 
interlace and intersect, forming an uninterrupted communi- 
cation at last with the Tensas, and from the Tensas with the 
Washita, and finally the Red river, which itself empties into 
the Mississippi four hundred miles below Vicksburg. The 
plan was to cut a canal a mile long, from the Mississippi 
into Lake Providence, so as to let in the waters of the 
great river; then to improve the navigation of these vari- 
ous shallow creeks in the interior of Louisiana, to clear 
away trees, dig out swamps, deepen channels, until an abso- 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 223 

lute water-course should be opened into the -Red river, so 
that the army might be moved on transports through these 
bayous into the Mississippi below, and then be able to 
march up and reach Vicksburg on the southern side. It 
was, however, found impossible to secure a sufficient num- 
ber of light-draught steamers to carry an army through 
these shallow streams. 

It was the impossibility of marching troops over the sub- 
merged swamps that made Grant's principal difficulty. If it 
had not been for this, he could at once have moved along 
the western bank ; but neither men nor artillery nor stores 
could be got through the inundated region ; so that still 
another undertaking was begun ; this one on the eastern 
side. The Yazoo pass is a narrow creek, three hundred 
miles above Vicksburg, which formerly connected Moon 
lake with the Mississippi river. The lake is similar to Lake 
Providence, having been formed by the windings of the 
Mississippi, which every now and then deviates from its 
ancient course, and leaves a bed of standing water, miles 
away from its more recent channel. Moon lake is connected 
with two or three large and navigable streams ; the Cold 
Water, the Tallahatchie, and the Yallabusha, which finally 
unite and form the Yazoo. The plan was to cut the levee 
which interrupted the flow of the Mississippi into Yazoo 
pass, and then, to carry troops into the Yazoo, to the hills 
above Vicksburg, and so get the army on dry land. 

The scheme was prosecuted with great vigor ; the 
streams were deeper and wider than on the western side, 
and the plan promised more success. But the Confederates 
soon discovered the attempt, and hewed large trees into 
the rivers to obstruct the advance. Troops on transports, 
under cover of gunboats, were sent into the pass, and, 
after infinite trouble and delay, succeeded in removing these 
obstructions. But while this was going on, the enemy set 
to work fortifying, and at the junction of the two rivers 
which form the Yazoo, hundreds of miles from the Missis- 
sippi, they erected a formidable work called Fort Pember- 
ton. The gunboats made three attempts to silence its guns, 
but the character of the stream was such that they could 



2 24 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

not approach it properly for their purposes, and this attempt 
also failed. Nothing was able to pass Fort Pemberton. 
Grant had by this time sent several thousand men into the 
pass, and was making preparations to move an entire corps 
In the same direction, when the utter impracticability of this 
route was demonstrated. 

Nearer to VIcksburg than the Yazoo pass, and on the 
same side of the river, Is another network of bayous, con- 
necting the Mississippi with the Yazoo. These creeks are 
more tortuous and difficult, by far, than those which consti- 
tute the pass ; they are choked up with trees ; so narrow 
that the branches from each side are interlaced, and so 
crooked that it seemed impossible to navigate them. But 
Grant conferred with Admiral Porter, and, after making a 
reconnoissance himself, determined to send Sherman up 
this route, so as, If possible, to strike the Yazoo river below 
the point where the Confederate fort had been built, and 
thus not only extricate the Union troops who had gone in 
from above, but threaten the Confederate forces in the in- 
terior, who would thus be placed between two national de- 
tachments. 

The difficulties encountered on this route, which was 
called the Steele's bayou route, from one of the creeks on 
the way, far transcended any of those which obstructed the 
other expeditions. But Sherman and Porter pushed on; 
the gunboats went in advance, to force, by their heavier 
weight, a passage through the trees, so that the steamers 
carrying troops might follow. For miles there was no hard 
land where soldiers could march ; and the creeks were so 
narrow, crooked, obstructed, and shallow, that only the very 
smallest steamers, coal barees and tues could make their 
way. The gunboats thus got far ahead, and the Confeder- 
ates, discovering this, placed obstructions not only in front 
of the gunboats, but In their rear, so as to cut them off from 
the troops. The sharpshooters of the enemy also annoyed 
Porter from the banks, and Confederate artillery was 
placed at Intervals. This threatened the absolute loss of 
the gunboat fleet, and Porter sent back for Sherman to 
hurry to his rescue. Sherman got the news at night, but 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 



225 



Started at once along a narrow strip of dry land which 
fortunately existed here, led his troops by lighted candles 
through the canebrake, and drove away the Confederate 
assailants. Then, though with infinite difficulty, the obstruc- 
tions in the rear were removed, and the gunboats set about 
returning ; there was not room to turn, and they had to 
back out for miles ; but on the 27th of March the unsuc- 
cessful expedition was back in front of Vicksburg. 

Meanwhile, Grant had other enemies to contend with be- 
sides the Confederates and the elements. There were con- 
stant efforts being made to supersede him. McClernand 
was still manoeuvring to obtain command of the expedition, 
and was constantly annoying Grant by his insubordination 
and inefficiency, yet Grant was not allowed to remove him. 
The country was dissatisfied with the lack of success, and 
the government was impatient. But although of course all 
these things were harassing in the extreme, Grant did not 
allow them to interfere with his determination or his energy. 
So lone as he was continued in command, he would inter- 
mit no exertion ; but it was painful indeed to feel that he 
was losing the confidence of the country and the govern- 
ment, through the machinations of inefficient rivals and 
political subordinates, at a time when he needed all the 
moral support that could be bestowed. 

Every plan to reach Vicksburg by water having failed. 
Grant finally devised another, which depended upon the 
subsidence of the floods. It was now March, and before 
long the overflow must begin to abate in some degree. He 
proposed to make use of a system of bayous starting from 
near the Mississippi, opposite the mouth of the Yazoo, and 
running to a point below Vicksburg, on the western shore. 
By this route the supplies and artillery were to be trans- 
ported on steamers, while the troops could march by land. 
When they should arrive below. Grant was ordered to send 
a corps to Banks, who was now in New Orleans with a 
large army, about to attack Port Hudson, the only other 
fort yet held by the enemy on the Mississippi. After Port 
Hudson should be taken, the plan was for Banks to come 
up and co-operate with Grant in the attack on Vicksburg. 
15 



226 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

But Grant's best officers opposed this plan. Those in 
whose judgment and fideHty he had most confidence im- 
plored him not to risk the inevitable dangers of such a 
campaign. Sherman especially urged him, in conversation 
and in writing, not to undertake it. This scheme would 
separate the army entirely from its base. Grant heard all 
the arguments with patience and consideration, but they 
did not move him a particle. He felt that the temper of 
the country was despondent; no success had occurred for 
many weary months; it was necessary to revive its spirit. 
To make a retrograde movement, as Sherman proposed, 
would elate the Confederates and depress his own troops, 
while it would have a disastrous effect upon the courage of 
the North. Besides which, Grant felt ^certain that he should 
be victorious in this new campaign ; and though he noted 
all the dangers, he calmly determined to incur them. 

The orders for the movement were issued, and from that 
moment Sherman's opposition ceased. He worked as hard 
hereafter to insure success as he had striven before to pre- 
vent the campaign. The movement was begun on the 2d 
of March. The roads were intolerably bad ; bridges were 
broken, streams overflowed, the results of the long inunda- 
tion made the mud deep, and the troops plodded and 
plunged along. When they reached the point where they 
were to strike the Mississippi, below Vicksburg, the levee 
was found to be broken, and they had to be ferried for two 
miles ; but the labor and time consumed in moving an 
entire army with all its stores in small boats were so great, 
that a detour was made instead to a point lower down the 
river, making the entire distance to march, from the point 
of starting, seventy miles. Just at this juncture the river 
fell, and the streams by which Grant expected to move his 
artillery and supplies became unnavigable, so that all the 
heavy ordnance and commissary stores had to be hauled 
along the miserable muddy roads. 

This could not possibly be accomplished in months ; and 
to obviate the new difficulty. Grant now proposed a daring 
scheme to the naval commander, who had been his able 
and faithful coadjutor in all these efforts. Grant was to 




(227) 



228 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

run three steamers and ten barges by the Vicksburg bat- 
teries, while seven of Porter's iron-dads should eneao^e the 
Confederates, covering the passage of the unarmed vessels. 
Porter agreed, and on the i6th of April the attempt was 
made. It was a dark night, and the gunboats led the way. 
Soon, however, the Confederates set lire to houses on the 
shore, and thus got light to direct their guns on the pass- 
ing fleet. The storm of missiles was terrific; every vessel 
was struck, several were disabled, and one took fire, burn- 
inof to the water's edee. The orunboats fougrht the batteries 
manfully, and for two hours and forty minutes this wonder- 
ful midnight battle raged. All the population of Vicksburg 
came out to witness it, and the Union troops, in their dis- 
tant camps, were also spectators of the scene. But, with 
a single exception, every transport and gunboat passed the 
ordeal; only eight men were wounded, and the "Henry 
Clay " was the only vessel destroyed. 

This part of the enterprise was so successful, that ten 
days afterwards, six other transports and twelve barges 
made a similar attempt; one transport was sunk, but half 
of the barges got safely by, so that Grant now had a good 
supply of provisions below Vicksburg, and Porter's seven 
gunboats were also there for use in any further movements. 
Two corps of troops had meanwhile arrived by land, and 
on the 29th of April a gunboat-attack was made, at Grant's 
request, on a formidable work on the eastern shore, called 
Grand Gulf This place was in reality an outwork of 
Vicksburg; although fifty miles below the town, it was at 
the first point where there was any hard land on which 
troops could be landed. The hills here are as precipitous 
as at Vicksburg, and thirteen heavy guns were mounted. 
A gallant attempt by Porter to silence these guns was 
made, but failed. Grant had his troops on transports ready 
to land them, the moment the batteries were silenced ; and 
when the impossibility of this was discovered, he imme- 
diately went aboard Porter's flag-ship and asked him once 
more to run his iron-clads by the batteries. 

The nicrht after the defeat before Grand Gulf he landed 
his troops again on the western shore, and marched them 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 2 29 

to a point below that work, and out of the reach of its 
guns. Meanwhile the transports ran by the batteries, 
while Porter again engaged the enemy, and then himself 
passed below with his gunboats. During the morning, the 
Thirteenth corps was once more embarked on the steamers. 
Reconnoissances of the eastern shore had developed the 
fact that there was little hard land even yet on that bank ; 
but in the night, a negro brought information of a good 
road leading from a place called Bruinsburg, six miles below 
Grand Gulf, up to high ground in the interior. To Bruins- 
burg, therefore, Grant moved with his advance. 

Meanwhile, Sherman had been ordered to remain above, 
and make an attack on the north of Vicksburg, merely to 
distract the attention of the enemy from the important 
movements on the southern side. In this he was assisted 
by the gunboat force left there by Porter, and on the 29th 
and 30th, a formidable demonstration succeeded in alarm- 
ing and occupying the garrison at Vicksburg. Grant had 
been very unwilling to order this demonstration, because 
Sherman had already suffered unjustly in the estimation of 
the country from his former failure in front of Vicksburg. 
He told Sherman of this unwillingness, and the latter re- 
plied : " 1 believe a diversion at Maine's Bluff is proper and 
right, and will make it, let whatever reports of repulses be 
made." 

Before beginning his march on the western bank. Grant 
had given orders for a cavalry movement into the interior 
of Mississippi, under Colonel Grierson. This was to start 
from the northern boundary of the State, to destroy bridges, 
cut railroads, and, avoiding large forces of the enemy, to do 
all the damage possible to the Confederate communications, 
isolating the garrison of Vicksburg, and alarming the in- 
habitants of the entire State ; for the whole population of 
the South was now at war. There were no able-bodied men 
out of the Confederate service; those who were not in the 
regular army were spies and partisans, and Grant in his 
turn determined to make war upon the people as well as 
upon the armies of the South. His orders were constant 
not to molest or mjure women or children ; fiot to do damage 



230 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

to property zuithout some military object; but he deliberately 
sought to destroy ah the military resources of the rebelHon. 
Among these, none were more important than suppHes of 
food. The Confederate armies were kept up by means of 
the subsistence stores forwarded to them from the interior, 
and Grant began now the plan of destroying those stores, 
just as he would arms or ammunition. 

This raid of Grierson's was eminently successful. It was 
the first of those great expeditions which, penetrating into 
distant regions that fancied themselves secure, brouo-ht 
home the punishment of rebellion to the quietest hamlets ; 
which carried destruction to the very source and root of 
Confederate strength. 

The Thirteenth corps, under McClernand, had the ad- 
vance in crossing the Mississippi ; after them came two 
divisions of the Seventeenth, under McPherson. These 
were all landed at Bruinsburg, on the eastern shore, during 
the 30th of April. They .were supplied with three days' 
rations, which they were ordered to make last five. Neither 
tents nor baggage was taken ; no personal effects, even lor 
officers, were ferried across until all the troops were over. 
Grant took not even his own horse, but borrowed one on 
the road from a soldier. Everything now depended on 
rapidity of motion, and Admiral Porter loaned his gunboats 
to ferry artillery and troops. 

It was important to seize Port Gibson at once, so as to 
hold these various roads. The possession of this place 
secured Grand Gulf, which would be cut off entirely when- 
ever Port Gibson fell. Durine the nieht McClernand's 
advance came in contact with the Confederates a few miles 
from the town, the garrison of Grand Gulf havlni^ marched 
promptly out to oppose the movement of Grant. At day- 
light the battle began. The Confederates were about eleven 
thousand strong ; Grant heard the firing at the Landing, 
and started at once for the front, arriving at ten o'clock. 
The battle was even for several hours, the Confederates 
having great advantages of position, but about noon 
McPherson's corps arrived, giving Grant the superiority in 
numbers ; he at once threw fresh troops both to the right 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 23I 

and left of McClernand, and before night the position was 
completely turned, and the enemy driven in confusion to 
Port Gibson. The ground was very rugged, and com- 
pletely unknown to the Union army, so that Grant was 
obliged to delay the pursuit until daylight, when, on push- 
ing into the town, it was found to be evacuated. In this 
battle Grant had about nineteen thousand men engaged; 
he lost over eight hundred men killed and wounded, and 
took six hundred and fifty prisoners, besides killincr and 
wounding mgre than as many of the enemy. His success 
was due entirely to the celerity and unexpected character 
of his movements. The enemy was admirably posted on a 
steep ridge, protected by a broken country covered with 
tangled vine and underbrush, and the Confederates fought 
well. Reinforcements of five thousand men had been or- 
dered from Vicksburg and others from Jackson, but they 
only arrived in time to share the flight. 

In their retreat, they burnt the bridges over several 
streams, and Grant next day was obliged to rebuild these, 
before he could make any progress. But extraordinary 
efforts were made, the houses in the neighborhood were 
torn down for timber, and officers and men worked up to 
their waists in the water. The two corps were pushed on, 
that day and the next, about fifteen miles, to the Big Black 
river, skirmishing with the enemy all the way. But Grand 
Gulf was now uncovered, and Grant himself rode oft in 
that direction with a small escort. He found the town 
already in possession of the naval forces, which had landed 
early in the day. 

Grant had not been undressed since crossing the river, 
three days -before, and now- went aboard the gunboats, 
where he borrowed a shirt, and wrote despatches nearly all 
night. He ordered Sherman to move dow^n on the opposite 
side of the river and join the main army ; he informed the 
government of his own movements, and gave orders to his 
subordinates to forward supplies as rapidly as possible. All 
his supplies, oi^ every description, had to come seventy miles 
by land on the western bank, then to be ferried across to 
Bruinsburg, and so moved up to the army. Upon every- 



2^2 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

body he urged the overwhelming importance of celerity; 
for as soon as the enemy should become aware that the 
whole Union army was on the eastern bank, of course every 
possible effort would be made to destroy it. 

At Grand Gulf, Grant got word from Banks that changed 
the whole character of his campaign. Heretofore he had 
intended to march to Port Hudson, several hundred miles, 
and to join Banks in the attack on that place ; and when 
this was over, both armies were to move up against Vicks- 
burg. But Banks now sent him word that he could not be 
at Port Hudson before the loth of May, and even after Port 
Hudson had fallen, he could not march to Vicksburg with 
more than 12,000 men. This information decided Grant 
not to go to Banks at all. He would lose more than 1 2,000 
men on the march to Port Hudson, and in the siege and 
probable batdes there ; so that he would be no stronger on 
his return than now. Besides this, he had already won a 
victory ; he had got his army on dry ground, where he had 
been striving all winter to place it ; he had captured Grand 
Gulf, and was on the high road to Vicksburg or Jackson. 
He made up his mind that night to commence the Vicks- 
buro- campaign. It was fortunate indeed for the country 
that'^Banks sent him the message of delay. 

Vicksburg now was only twenty miles off, with one large 
river, the Big Black, in the way. It was defended by 52,000 
men, either in the garrison or in the interior of the State ; 
this force was under Pemberton. Another but smaller 
Confederate army at Jackson, fifty miles directly west from 
Vicksburg, was eventually commanded by Jo Johnston ; at 
this time it amounted to 10,000 or 12,000 men, though 
before the campaign terminated it was quadrupled. To 
oppose these two formidable bodies of troops, Grant would 
have, when Sherman should arrive, not more than 35,000 
men in column, and twenty light batteries. The Confed- 
erates had at least 300 guns. They were also on the de- 
fensive, and in a country with every inch of which they 
were familiar, and where every inhabitant was their friend, 
their pardsan, their spy. The two Confederate forces, if 
combined, would certainly largely outnumber, and perhaps 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 233 

crush the Union army. Instead, therefore, of moving at 
once against Vicksburg, Grant determined to push directly 
between the two hostile forces, separate them completely, 
and attack the smaller one before the other could come to 
the rescue ; to drive it east as far as Jackson, where all the 
railroads centre by which Vicksburg was supplied ; and 
after destroying Johnston, and the Confederate stores and 
communications at- Jackson, to return and capture Vicks- 
burg at his leisure. 

To perform it, he must abandon his base of supplies en- 
tirely ; for, if he moved east after Johnston, Pemberton 
would be sure to fall upon his line of communications in 
rear; and to euard this line would weaken Grant, so that 
]ie could not be strong enough for the operations he con- 
templated. He therefore sent word to have the greatest 
possible amount of supplies forwarded him before starting, 
and determined to cut loose entirely from his base, de- 
pending on the country for all further rations and forage. 
He gave no notice of his intention to the government in 
advance, and it was lucky that he did not, for as soon as 
Halleck discovered the plan, he sent word to Grant to re- 
turn; but it was too late ; the order did not reach Grant till 
the campaign was decided. 

Sherman was hurried up, the greatest possible energy 
inculcated upon everybody, dispositions made of the troops 
which were to remain on the west side of the Mississippi 
and at Grand Gulf, and, on the 7th of May, the venturous 
column started for Jackson. Meanwhile, Grant's horses 
had arrived and his mess furniture. Hitherto he had de- 
pended on the hospitality of his subordinates, not only for 
a horse, but for every meal of the campaign. Sherman's 
corps arrived just as the advance of the army was starting ; 
and he was directed by Grant to take three days' rations 
for men, and make them last seven. On the nth, Grant 
informed Halleck, "As I shall communicate with Grand 
Gulf no more, you may not hear from me again for several 
days." This was the very day on which Halleck sent word 
to Grant to return and co-operate with Banks. The two 
despatches crossed each other on the way ; but there was 



234 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

no telegraph communication, and each was a week in 
reaching^ its destination. 

On this Sunday night, two friends and myself, anxious to 
get to the front, left Young's Point upon a tug towing two 
barges of forage and provisions, which Grant had ordered 
to run the batteries. After we had been under fire from 
the Vicksburg guns for three-quarters of an hour, and were 
almost out of range, a shot exploded and sunk our tug and 
fired our barges. Sixteen of us — out of the thirty-five on 
board — had the good fortune to be picked up in the river 
by the enemy, and one comrade and myself had the ill for- 
tune, for nearly two years thereafter, to study the war and 
rejoice in Grant's victories from successive southern prisons. 
After the prisons reached the magic number of seven, we 
luckily escaped. 

On our abrupt advent into Vicksburg, the Confederate 
officers cheerfully assured us that they expected to see Grant 
a prisoner there within a few days. We replied that they 
would undoubtedly see him, but not exacdy in the capacity 
of a captive. 

Colonel Grierson, who had left La Grange, Tennessee, 
with 1,700 cavalry, after traversing Mississippi lengthwise, 
destroying stores and arms, tearing up raihvays, burning 
bridges, capturing militia, and carrying consternation through 
the entire State, reached our lines at Baton Rouge, having 
travelled 600 miles in fifteen days, and lost less than thirty 
men in sick, wounded and missing. Nowhere did he meet 
with any serious resistance, and his daring raid convinced 
Grant that die Confederacy had become " a mere shell with 
all its resisting power on the outer edge." 

The general, now'at the Big Black, and facing northw^^rd, 
was between two wings of the enemy. On his left, Pem- 
berton held Vicksburg and vicinity with 50,000 men. On 
the right, the enemies' reinforcements were approaching 
in unknown numbers. To annihilate this force before it 
could join Pemberton, and still be able to cope with the 
latter, would require rapid marching and more men than he 
had, if he should attempt to keep open communication with 
Grand Gulf, his present depot of supplies. 




O 

O 

w 

H 

w 



(23s) 



236 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Early in the morning of the 12th of May, McPherson, 
who held the extreme right, approaching the little town of 
Ra3^mond, encountered 5,000 Confederates under Gregg, 
very strongly posted. The Union force was much the 
larger, but not until after three hours of stubborn fighting 
was the enemy driven back with a loss of 300 killed and 
wounded, and many prisoners. 

Grant, concentrating his main force to meet Pemberton's 
army at Edwards' Depot, and Bolton north of him, had de- 
signed sending only a little expedition eastward into Jackson 
to destroy Confederate stores. But now Rawlins and Wilson 
rode back to inform him that the enemy on McPherson's front 
had retreated, not upon Vicksburg, but toward Jackson. He 
instantly surmised that reinforcements enough to swell 
Gregg's command to twelve or fourteen thousand must be 
concentrating in that direction. Even if he should whip 
Pemberton it would never do to turn toward Vicksburg, 
leaving this enemy in the rear. 

Simply asking one or two questions, and without rising 
from his chair, he wrote orders to turn the entire army to- 
ward Jackson. This readiness to modify an old plan, or 
substitute a new one on the instant when emergencies 
required it, was one of his strongest and most characteristic 
points. On cutting loose from Grand Gulf, he said : 

" I think we can reduce Jackson, and reopen communica- 
tions with the fleet above Vicksburg in about Jive days!' 

It was like Cortez burning his ships. Grant sent out 
expeditions on every side for food and forage, and order- 
ing no more supplies brought to his rear, turned back his 
extra wagons, and left his field hospitals at Port Gibson 
and Raymond in charge of Federal surgeons with flags of 
truce. 

He found in the country enough of provisions and forage, 
abundance of horse and mule teams, and no end of negroes 
delighted to drive them ; and thenceforth multitudes of 
catde, sheep, turkeys, chickens, and pigs, indiscriminately 
mingled, followed in the wake of his army. 

McPherson struck the railroad at Clinton, tore up the 
track, burned bridges, and captured despatches showing 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 



237 



that Pemberton was still at Edwards Station, eighteen 
miles east of Vicksburg, expecting an attack. 

Sherman, after makinor a feint at Maine's Bluff to deceive 
Pemberton, and then moving rapidly along the circuitous 
land and river route upon which the rest of the army 
preceded him, had now arrived with his fine corps eager 
for work. He and McPherson were ordered to reduce 
Jackson. 

On the morning of May 14th both were marching upon 
the town, McPherson along the railway from Clinton, ten 
miles west, and Sherman across the country from a point 
fourteen miles southwest. They expected to arrive at the 
same moment, but Sherman's roads were so muddy that it 
was almost impossible to move artillery. His men, how- 
ever, throwing away their boots and shoes, and floundering 
through the mud up to their knees, shouted, laughed, and 
sang, in the most exuberant spirits. 

An hour before noon, in the midst of a driving rain, they 
approached the city from the south, and were stopped by a 
battery of six-pounders in a strip of woods, two miles out. Ar- 
tillery skirmishing followed. Among the troops lying in a 
field a shell exploded now and then, and with natural scruples 
about keeping quiet to be murdered many jumped up and 
ran to the rear. Grant and staff, sitting twenty paces be- 
hind them, under some spreading trees for protection from 
the rain, persuaded them to return, until the storm of water 
grew so much more uncomfortable than the storm of shot 
that they sought shelter in some old shanties a hundred 
yards away. 

What virtue in a general is equal to promptness ? What 
general ever had it in a higher degree than Grant? Only 
the night before, Joseph E. Johnston, a most able Confed- 
erate commander, had arrived on his front. Very soon 
Johnston would have concentrated the scattered Confeder- 
ates, and struck Grant on the flank before uniting with 
Pemberton, for whom he was amply competent to furnish 
brains. But our general falling upon him so unexpectedly 
quite spoiled his game. McPherson, after three hours' 
fighting on the west side, had already driven in the enemy, 



238 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

and Sherman soon swept forward. The Confederate can- 
noneers stood their ground until his infantry were within 
six feet of them. Then they flung down their rammers and 
surrendered, both they and their captors, including Grant, 
laughing heartily at their dare-devil tenacity. Soldiers 
soon get on familiar terms with death, and the tragedy of 
war has frequent interludes of comedy. 

Though squads of Confederate cavalry were still in sight, 
and though the staff expostulated, the chief, remarking that 
he guessed there was no danger, galloped forward into the 
city. Fred rode with the party, and entered Jackson at the 
head of it. The streets were full of gleeful negroes, while 
from windows and half-open doors peered some anxious, 
pallid faces. But snowy flags flew from the houses, and 
many white families seemed overjoyed, for there was a 
good deal of Union sentiment. 

Grant and staff rode to the leading hotel — a large build- 
ing near the capital, where Johnston had slept the night 
before. They fancied themselves the first Yankees in 
Jackson, but private enterprise had outrun official routine, 
and the muskets were ahead of the shoulder-straps. Three 
of McPherson's cavalrymen were already raising the Stars 
and Stripes upon the State-house. The people flocked 
about the light-bearded, mud-stained general — who bore no 
mark of his rank — with all sorts of petitions, in response 
to one of which he instandy stationed guards to protect the 
inmates of the large Catholic convent. 

The public stores had been left open, and the ransomed 
black sinners, confident that their year of jubilee had come, 
were making a haul of clothing and provisions. One, stag- 
gering under an enormous burden of garments, was ac- 
costed by a staff officer: 

*' Hallo, uncle ; haven't you got more than your share of 
coats ? " 

" Dunno, mass'r ; if you likes one, take it." 

The next morning details were sent out to destroy all 
railways, machine shops, manufactories, and public stores. 
A large cotton factory was reported filled with duck. The 
owner piteously begged the general to spare it. 




(239) 



240 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



Grant — " Whom are you making duck for ? " 
The proprietor answered, in evident embarrassment, that 
his customers were many. 

Grant — "Wilson, did you see any mark on that duck?** 
Wilson — " Yes ; it bears the stamp ' C. S. A.' " 
Grant — "Then, sir, I guess your factory must be burned 
with the rest." 

Many alarmed citizens begged the general not to destroy 
the town. He replied, that while everything belonging to 
the Confederacy and all stores which could help it must be 
burned, he would do all in his power to protect private 
property. But he could not save it altogether. Our troops, 
for once, deserved the favorite epithet of the enemy, 
" Northern vandals," for they pillaged houses and fired a 
hotel and a church. It has been urged in extenuation, that 
several had previously suffered gross indignities while pris- 
oners in Jackson. 

The reinforcements that were coming up to the enemy 
were obliged to make wide and long detours to join their 
commander. But, although success had been so marked, 
it was still not complete. There was yet imminent danger 
of a concentration of the two Confederate armies ; and be- 
fore night Grant got possession of a despatch from John- 
ston to Pemberton, directing the concentration so much to 
be feared, 

He determined to prevent this, and accordingly that 
afternoon ordered McPherson to retrace his steps, march- 
ing in the morninr/ in the direction of Edwards' Station. 
McClernand was also informed of the defeat of Johnston, 
and of the danger of Confederate concentration. His 
troops were at once faced about in the same direction as 
McPherson's. The various corps were admirably located, 
so as to converge on the same point, which was Bolton, a 
station a fev/ miles east of Edwards', where Pemberton was 
known to be. The men were fatio^ued, havino^been march- 
ing or fighting incessantly since the 7th, but there was no 
time now for rest. Accordingly, early on the morning of 
the 15th, the two corps had turned their faces towards 
Vicksburg, and were in motion for the enemy. Sherman 




(241) 



242 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

was to spend that clay destroying the munitions and mili- 
tary resources in and around Jackson. Before night, Mc- 
pherson and McClernand were within supporting distance 
of each other at Bolton, and ordered to march in the morn- 
ing for Edwards' Station, while Pemberton still delayed, in 
disobedience of Johnston's orders. He did not dream that 
Grant had no communications with the Mississippi, and his 
idea was to march south and cut those communications. 
On the morning of the 15th he moved for this purpose 
southeast of Edwards' Station, away from Johnston, who 
had by this time been driven north from Jackson, so that 
the enemy was actually moving in an opposite direction, 
while Grant was converging between them ; Pemberton 
striving to cut Grant's communications with the Mississippi, 
while Grant, who had cut them himself nine days before, 
was returning to Vicksburg, and seeking Pemberton to de- 
stroy him. 

Pemberton moved slowly, and again received positive 
orders from Johnston to join him. On the i6th he finally 
concluded to obey, and reversed his column. But in the 
night Grant had got word of Pemberton's exact force and 
position, and of the design to attack the national rear. He 
instantly despatched to Sherman to start at once from 
Jackson to the support of the main army. "The fight may 
be brought on at any moment ; we should have every inaji 
on the field!' A national division was now coming up 
alone from Grand Gulf, and this was also ordered to join 
the main army. "Pass your troops to the front of )our 
trains, and heep tJie ammjmition in front of all others T 

Three roads lead to Edwards' Station from the east, and 
on the northern one Grant had four divisions, under Mc- 
Pherson, while on each of the others were two divisions, all 
these last under McClernand. Sherman had not got up. 
The advance of McClernand encountered Pemberton's 
skirmishers just as the reverse movement of the Confeder- 
ate column began, and the enemy at once fell into an 
admirable position, covering all three roads. The enemy's 
left was on a hill called Champion's Hill, and by eleven 
o'clock the force under McPherson assaulted here. Grant 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 243 

was with this portion of his command in person. The 
enemy had 25,000 men, a defensive position, and, as usual, 
complete knowledge of the country, of which, of course, the 
national troops were entirely ignorant. The batde raged 
with various fortune for several hours; the Union soldiers 
gained a point on the hill several times, but were driven 
back as often, and Grant sent repeated orders to Mc- 
Clernand to come up to the support; but that commander 
allowed an inferior force to delay him, and, in spite of 
Grant's positive direcdons to attack, he did not obey. 
Finally, Grant sent troops to the extreme Confederate left 
and rear, and these produced such an effect that, combined 
with another direct attack in front the enemy gave way, 
and the hill was carried, McClernand not having been en- 
gaged at all. One of his divisions had been on the right 
widi Grant all day, and in the thickest of the fight, but 
those under McClernand's direct command were not in the 
batde. 

The rout of the enemy was complete, and as McCler- 
nand now came up in force. Grant sent these fresh troops 
in pursuit. Grant had not had more than fifteen thousand 
men engaged. He lost about two thousand four hundred 
men in the batde of Champion's Hill, which was by far the 
hardest fought in the whole campaign. The enemy's loss 
was between three thousand and four thousand killed and 
wounded, and as many more prisoners, besides thirty can- 
non. In addidon to this, one whole division was cut off 
from the bulk of the Confederate army in the precipitous 
flight. It struggled along, making a wide detour, and re- 
ported to Johnston several days afterwards, but Pemberton 
never commanded it again. The moral effects of this vic- 
tory were prodigious. The Confederate troops broke and 
fled in every direcdon ; ardllerymen deserted their guns in 
the retreat, and many of the soldiers threw away their 
small arms, and gave themselves up prisoners before they 
were asked. The pursuit was condnued till after dark, 
reaching fifteen miles. Grant himself was with the ad- 
vance, and his party got so far ahead of the main column, 
that they were obliged to return to a more secure position 



244 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

for the night. That night Grant received Halleck's orders 
to return to the Mississippi and co-operate with Banks; 
but the best way to return now was to proceed In his 
career of victory. 

It was nothing but the marvellous energy and prompt- 
ness of Grant that won this battle. Pemberton was 
actually moving to join Johnston when he was struck by 
Grant; had the national commander delayed a day, the 
concentration would have been effected ; but It was now 
forever Impossible. 

The next day the pursuit was pushed on ; Sherman hav- 
ing arrived at Bolton by the close of the 15th, he was or- 
dered to move at once to the rioht of the rest of the 
command. Grant reached the Big Black river, the only 
one now between his army and VIcksburg, early In the 
morning of the 17th, his advance having started before 
daylight. At the crossing of the railroad over this river, 
the enemy had established a formidable w^ork ; here the 
river makes a bend like a horse-shoe, open towards the 
east, and the line of fortifications was across this opening, 
reaching from the river above to the river again below. 
The ground in front was swampy and exposed to the 
enemy's fire, while still beyond, on the western bank of the 
river, rose steep bluffs, commanding the country for miles. 
This point was defended by twenty cannon and four 
thousand troops, who ought to have held It against direct 
assault forever. But the Union troops were Inspired by 
the long series of successes, while the enemy was exhausted 
with disaster and retreat. At the first attack, by only 
about eleven hundred men, the enemy fled In dismay, 
abandoning all their guns, and only seeking to reach the 
river. The panic spread to the troops on the opposite 
shore, who set fire to the bridge, and nearly eighteen hun- 
dred prisoners, with eighteen pieces of artillery, were cap- 
tured. Grant lost only two hundred and fifty men. 

But their depression now was terrible. Many left their 
ranks, and vowed they would surrender rather than fight 
again under Pemberton. The people of the country joined 
them, and all fled Into VIcksburg, from the conqueror who 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 245 

had won five battles In less than twenty days, captured six 
thousand five hundred of the enemy, and killed and 
wounded six thousand more. He had done this, after 
starting with an average of two days' rations, and he had 
subsisted his own army, besides beating two of the enemy's, 
and lost only seven hundred killed and three thousand four 
hundred wounded. 

After rebuilding the bridges out of the wood of houses 
torn down for the purpose, he pressed rapidly on, and on 
the 1 8th of May Vicksburg was besieged. 

The country around Vicksburg is broken and difficult In 
an extraordinary degree ; full of rough hills and rougher 
ravines, with numerous creeks running between the various 
heights, and a thick growth of underbrush or forest cover- 
ing the sides of the cliffs and chasms ; a region expressly 
adapted for defence. These natural advantages had been 
developed to their utmost by the enemy, whose line of 
works, located on the most salient ridges, reached entirely 
around the city. Numerous detached forts were built at 
intervals, and between these stretched an uninterrupted 
line of rifle-pits, not less than eight miles long. Outside 
of the parapet, the enemy had formed an unusually diffi- 
cult abads of fallen trees. Within these lines, Pemberton 
had now nearly thirty-five thousand men, for he was of 
course reinforced by the garrison proper, of the town. A 
hundred guns at least were also ready to repel assault. 
Johnston, however, feared that even with all these defences, 
natural and artificial, Pemberton would finally be compelled 
to surrender ; he therefore ordered his subordinate to 
evacuate the place. But again Grant's promptness inter- 
vened to frustrate the plans of his antagonist. Pemberton 
held a council of war on the i8th of May, and while it was 
still deliberating, Grant took his position on the outside 
and invested Vicksburg. The Union line at first was in- 
complete. Sherman had the right, McPherson the centre, 
and McClernand at this time the extreme left ; but the 
troops of the last-named officer did not extend to the Mis- 
sissippi ; while Sherman's right rested on the very hills 
from which he had been repelled in January before. 



246 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Grant did not delay operations, but the day after arriving 
before the town, he ordered an assault. With his usual 
tactics, he wished to take advantage of the demoralization 
of the enemy, before they had time to recover. Accord- 
ingly, on the 19th of May, all three of his corps com- 
manders were instructed to charge against the enemy's 
line ; but the sight of the lofty hills shutting in Vicksburg 
on every hand, these hundred cannon directed against the 
assailants, the reinforcement of elorht thousand men In ear- 
rison, and the knowledge of the extraordinary difficulties 
Grant must overcome before he could carry the works, so 
strong by nature and by art, reanimated the defenders. 
The corps of Sherman and of McPherson pushed up close 
to the enemy's works, but neither was able to make an im- 
pression ; and McClernand, whose troops w^ere farther 
from the city than either of the others, did not get up in 
time to really participate in the assault. The effort was 
therefore unsuccessful ; no entrance was gained ; but posi- 
tions close to the enemy w^ere obtained and held, which 
proved of vast importance during the siege. 

Grant now spent two days in resting his troops after the 
wonderful campaign through which they had passed ; In 
bringing up supplies, from the new base which was estab- 
lished on the Yazoo ; and In preparing for a second and 
more determined assault ; for he was loath to begin the 
tedious processes of a siege. His n>en, exhilarated by the 
success of the brilliant campaign, were also unlikely to set 
to work In the trenches with zeal until they knew that no 
other means would even yet suffice to conquer Vicksburg. 
After their successes at Champion's Hill and the Big 
Black, they thought themselves irresistible. Besides this, 
Johnston's army, still near Jackson, was daily receiving re- 
inforcements, and would soon, perhaps, equal Grant's in 
numbers, and be able to raise the siege. 

On the 2 2d of May a second assault w^as ordered. It 
was preceded by a vigorous bombardment both from the 
fleet and from a line of a hundred cannon mounted along 
the hills in the interior. At ten, the various columns 
moved against the enemy's works. The attack was made 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 24? 

with great vigor all along the line ; the men moved by the 
roads when this was practicable, and elsewhere down into 
the ravines and up the precipitous sides, on which the hos- 
tile fortifications awaited them. But the difficulties were 
insurmountable ; the assailants were exposed for a distance 
of several hundred yards to the artillery and musketry fire 
of the besieged ; they got entangled in the brushwood ; 
they were shot down before they could scale the hills. 
Everywhere they were repelled ; and although prodigies of 
valor had been performed, it was all in vain. The national 
flag in front of each had been planted on the enemy's 
works, and still ^mained there, but the troops were unable 
to penetrate farther, while the enemy dared not take the 
flags away. The battle was over, and no result was 
gained. 

At this moment McClernand sent a despatch to Grant, 
announcing the capture of two forts. This message was 
three times repeated, and Grant was urged to order an- 
other assault, to support the advantage said to have been 
gained by McClernand. Supposing that McClernand 
must know when a fort was gained. Grant complied with 
the request, and a second assault was ordered by Sher- 
man's and McPherson's worn-out men. This met with a 
similar result with the former one ; the loss of life was 
nearly doubled, and no more success was attained ; while it 
proved that McClernand had originally secured no advan- 
tage like that which he had proclaimed. He had carried no 
fort, and when the assault he requested was renewed solely 
to support him, he did not himself attain any advantage 
beyond what the others had already procured. 

At night three thousand national soldiers had been 
killed or wounded ; about thirty thousand had been 
enofaeed. Pemberton declared that he had eicrhteen 
thousand five hundred men in the trenches; he lost about 
one thousand soldiers in this fight. The disparity of course 
was occasioned by the enemy being under cover. Shortly 
after this assault, McClernand was relieved by General 
Ord, at the command of Grant. 

Johnston now was reinforced, till his army amounted to 



248 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

forty thousand men, and moved up on Grant's rear to re. 
lieve the city. But Grant now commanded seventy thou- 
sand soldiers, half of whom he kept in the trenches, and the 
other half he formed into a corps of observation against 
Johnston. These built a line of works facing east, protect- 
ing- the besiegers, who were thus enclosed between two 
lines — one in front and one in rear. 

Towards the last of June the sufferings of the besieged 
became very great. They were forced to put the men on 
quarter rations, and finally, after it became apparent to 
Pemberton that all hope of rescue had disappeared ; when 
it was certain that Johnston, with his forty thousand men, 
would not dare attack Grant in rear, although he would be 
supported by the entire garrison in front ; when neither the 
siege could be raised nor the garrison escape ; when the 
blockade by land and river was so effectual, that attempts 
to build boats and cross the Mississippi were detected ; 
when scouts were intercepted, bringing word to Pemberton 
that Johnston could do no more for him, and from Pember- 
ton, that his supplies of food and ammunition were both 
exhausted ; when for forty-seven days the besiegers and 
besieged had lain in the hot trenches, working, digging, 
mining, countermining, assaulting, repelling, advancing, 
retreating, sickening, dying; those inside almost starving, 
those outside often suffering from lack of water; both sides 
exposed to miasma and heat, and rain, and fatigue, and in- 
cessant danger from bursting shells and sharpshooters' 
rifles, and sudden attacks by night and day — finally, the 
mighty siege was about to terminate. 

On the '3d of July, Pemberton made overtures to Grant, 
and the same day a meeting of the two generals was held 
between their lines, and in sight of both armies. It took 
place under an oak tree, which has since been cut down to 
furnish mementos of the occasion. The troops for miles 
around hung over their parapets on either side, watching 
the interview on which the destinies of the two armies de- 
pended. But Pemberton was haughty, and refused the 
simple surrender which Grant demanded. In the night, 
however, he consulted with his subordinates, and came to a 



;,';:l|/7vr, 













9 . 



(249) 



250 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

better mind. By morning, he had agreed to deliver up the 
garrison, with all its munitions, as prisoners of war. Grant 
did not wish the trouble of feeding another army, and 
could not, in many weeks, procure transports sufficient to 
send his prisoners North ; he therefore stipulated that they 
should be paroled and sent into the interior, not to fight 
again until exchanged. Nearly the same terms which 
Napoleon granted to the Austrians at the famous sur- 
render of Ulm. 

On the 4th of July, therefore, the capture was consum- 
mated. Grant generously allowed the officers to retain 
their swords, and both officers and men their private 
property ; but the muskets were all stacked by the enemy 
themselves outside their works, between the lines. It took 
them nearly all day to march out of their defences, and lay 
down their colors and their arms, the national army 
lookine on. 

The value of the reduction of Vicksburg was not only 
great in a moral, political and strategical point of view ; 
but it possessed still further importance by inflicting a severe 
loss upon the enemy, in both men and material. 

The following is a rough estimate of the number 
of officers, soldiers and ordnance, which fell into the 
hands of the United States authorities with the city of 
Vicksburg: 

One Lieutenant-General, John C. Pemberton, late com- 
mandant of the army for the defence of Vicksburg. 

Nineteen major and brigadier-generals, as follows ; 
Major-General Bowen, Major-General Martin L. Smith and 
Major-General Forney ; Brigadier-Generals Barton, Coch- 
ran, Lee, Vaughn, Reynolds, Baldwin, Harris, Taylor, 
Cummings, Stevenson of Georgia, Hebart, Wall of Texas, 
commanding Texan Legion ; Moore, Schoep, Buford and 
Cockerell. 

Over four thousand field, line and staff officers. 

About twenty-three thousand effective men, non-com- 
missioned officers and privates, and over six thousand men 
in hospital. 

Ninety siege-guns. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 25 1 

One hundred and twenty-eight field-pieces. 

Thirty-five thousand (approximately) muskets and rifles, 
principally Enfield, and in excellent order. 

Powder and shell for ordnance of different calibre In 
abundance. 

A large quantity of miscellaneous matter, such as wag- 
ons, a few animals, armorers' tools, machinery, etc. 

Among the military establishments taken possession of 
were the arsenal, well supplied with unused rifles, and the 
foundry, with all conveniences for casting shot, shell and 
cannon, and capable of doing a great deal of other work 
of a similar character, such as casting. 

The troops taken prisoners were mainly composed of 
Mississlpplans, called " The State troops," Georgians, Ala- 
bamlans, Louisianians, Missourians and regulars. 

The following is a table compiled from various sources, 
and showing, at a glance, the estimated losses of the enemy, 
in men, from the commencement of the campaign, on April 
30th, to the final surrender of the city: 

Prisoners. 

Lieutenant-General i 

Major and brigadier-generals 19 

Field, staff and line officers 4,600 

Non-commissioned officers and privates 30,000 

Total, without regard to rank 34>62o 

Killed, Wounded and Stragglers. 

Killed in battles and skirmishes 1,000 

Wounded in battles and skirmishes 4,000 

Captured in hospitals in Vicksburg and elsewhere 6,000 

Stragglers, including men cut off and unable to rejoin 

their commands 800 

Total 11,800 

Recapitulation. 

Total prisoners 34,620 

Killed, wounded and in hospital 11,000 

Stragglers, etc Soo 

Making a loss to the enemy, in sixty-five days, of. 46,420 



252 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

The following table also shows the losses of material 
sustained by the enemy during the same length of time: 

Field Artillery. Pieces. 

Captured in battle 83 

At Vicksburg 128 

Total 211 

Siege Ai'tillery. 
At Vicksburg 90 

Captured Small-Arms. 

In battle 10,000 

At Vicksburg 35'Ooo 

Total - 45^000 

Recapitulation. 

Artillery captured 301 

Muskets and rifles 45j00o 

Besides this, a number of field-pieces and siege-guns were destroyed 
at Jackson, Maine's and Snyder's Bluffs, which are not included in the 
above estimate. 

General Grant, in his official report, sums up the Union 
losses, during the series of battles of the Vicksburg cam- 
paign, as follows : 

Killed. Wounded. Missing. Total. 

Port Gibson 130 718 5 853 

Fourteen-Mile Creek (skirmish)... 4 24 — 28 

Raymond 69 341 32 442 

Jackson.'. 40 240 6 286 

Champion's Hill 426 1,842 189 2,457 

Big Black Railroad Bridge 29 242 2 273 

Vicksburg 245 3,688 303 4,236 

Grand Total 943 7,o95 537 8,575 

General Recapitulation. 

Confederate losses in killed, wounded, stragglers and 

prisoners 46,420 

Union losses in killed, wounded, stragglers and i)ris- 

oners 8,575 

Balance in favor of Grant 37>845 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 253 

In addition, therefore, to the immense quantity of stores 
secured with the reduction of Vicksburg, a balance of 
nearly thirty-eight thousand men had to be placed to the 
credit of Grant's services during this campaign. 

The following extract, from General Grant's report, will 
show how the army subsisted during the first twenty days 
of the Vicksburg campaign: 

" In the march from Bruinsbure to Vicksburo- coverinor 
a period of twenty days, before supplies could be obtained 
from the government stores, only five days' rations were 
issued, and three days of those were taken in haversacks 
at the start, and were soon exhausted. All other subsist- 
ence was obtained from the country through which we 
passed. The march was commenced without wagons, ex- 
cept such as could be picked up through the country. The 
country was abundantly supplied with corn, bacon, beef and 
mutton. The troops enjoyed excellent health, and no 
army ever appeared in better spirits, or felt more confident 
of success." 

General Halleck, in his Annual Report of the War, thus 
speaks of the administration and success of the Depart- 
ment of the Tennessee: 

*' At the date of my last Annual Report, Major-Generai 
Grant occupied West Tennessee and the northern boundary 
of Mississippi. The object of the campaign of this army 
was the opening of the Mississippi river, in conjunction 
with the army of General Banks. 

" General Grant was instructed to drive the enemy in the 
interior as far south as possible, and destroy their railroad 
communications; then to fall back to Memphis and embark 
his available forces on transports, and with the assistance of 
the fleet of Admiral Porter, reduce Vicksburg. The first 
part of this plan was most successfully executed, but the 
right w^ng of the army sent against Vicksburg, under 
Major-General Sherman, found that place much stronger 
than was expected. 

" Tw^o attacks were made on the 28th and 29th of Decem- 
ber; but failing in their object, our troops were withdrawn, 
and while waiting for reinforcements from General Grant, 



254 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

moved up the Arkansas river to Arkansas Post, which 
place was, with the assistance of the gunboats, captured on 
the nth of January. 

" General Grant now assumed the immediate command 
of the army on the Mississippi, which was largely reinforced. 
Being satisfied by the result of General Sherman's opera- 
tions that the north line of the enemy's works was too 
strong to be carried without a very heavy loss, he directed 
his attention to opening the canal, which had been com- 
menced the year before by General Williams, across the 
peninsula on the west bank of the river. 

" This canal had been improperly located — its upper 
terminus being in an eddy, and the lower terminus being 
exposed to the enemy's guns ; nevertheless, it was thought 
that it could be completed sooner than a new one could be 
constructed. While working parties under Captain Prince, 
chief-engineer of that army, were diligently employed upon 
this canal, General Grant directed his attention to several 
other projects for turning the enemy's position. These 
are fully described in his official report. The canal proving 
impracticable, and his other plans being unsuccessful, he 
determined to move his army by land down the west bank 
of the river, some seventy miles, while transports for cross- 
ing should run past the enemy's batteries at Vicksburg. 

•'The danger of running the batteries being very great, 
and the roads on the west side in horrible condition, this 
was a difficult and hazardous expedient; but it seemed to 
be the only possible solution of the. problem. The execu- 
tion of the plan, however, was greatly facilitated by Admiral 
Farragut, who had run two of his vessels past the enemy's 
batteries at Port Hudson and Grand Gulf, and cleared the 
river of the enemy's boats below Vicksburg ; and finally, 
through the indomitable energy of the commanding general 
and the admirable dispositions of Admiral Porter for run- 
ning the enemy's batteries, the operation was completely 
successful. 

"The army crossed the river at Bruinsburg, April 30th, 
turned Grand Gulf, and engaged the enemy near Port Gib- 
son on the 1st, and at Fourteen-Mile Creek on the 3d of 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 255 

May. The enemy was defeated in both engagements, with 
heavy loss. General Grant now moved his forces by rapid 
marches to the north, in order to separate the garrison of 
Vicksburg from the covering army of Jolinston. This 
movement was followed by the battles of ' Raymond,' 
May 1 2th; of 'Jackson,' May 14th; of 'Champion's Hill,' 
May 1 6th, and of 'Big Black River Bridge,' May i7th-^ 
in all of which our troops were victorious. General Grant 
now proceeded to invest Vicksburg. 

"In order to facilitate General Grant's operations by de- 
stroying the enemy's lines of communication, and prevent 
the early concentration of any reinforcements, Colonel (now 
Brigadier-General) Grierson was sent with a cavalry force 
from La Grange on the 1 7th of April to traverse the interior 
of the State of Mississippi. This expedition was most 
successfully conducted. It destroyed many of the enemy's 
railroad bridges, depots and much rolling stock, and 
reached Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in safety on the 2d of 
May. On returning to Vicksburg, General Grant found 
his forces insufficient to entirely invest the enemy's works. 
There was, therefore, danger that the two bodies of the 
enemy under Pemberton and Johnston might yet effect a 
junction, as it was known that the latter was being largely 
reinforced from Bragg's army in Middle and East Tennes- 
see. Under these circumstances General Grant determined 
to attempt to carry the place by assault. 

"Two unsuccessful attacks were made May 19th and 
22d ; but as reinforcements reached him in a few days 
after, sufficiently large to enable him to completely Invest 
the Confederate defences, he resorted to the slow^er but 
more certain operations of a regular siege. By the 3d of 
July his saps were so far advanced as to render his success 
certain, and on that day General Pemberton proposed an 
armistice and capitulation, which were finally accepted, and 
Vicksburg surrendered on the 4th of July. 

" When we consider the character of the country in which 
this army operated, the formidable obstacles to be over- 
come, the number of forces and the strength of the enemy's 
works, we cannot fail to admire the courage and endurance 



256 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

of the troops, and the skill and daring of their commander. 
No more brilliant exploit can be found in military history. 
It has been alleged, and the allegation has been widely cir- 
culated by the press, that General Grant, In the conduct 
of his campaign, positively disobeyed the instructions of 
his superiors. It is hardly necessary to remark that Gen- 
eral Grant never disobeyed an order or instruction, but 
always carried out to the best of his ability every wish or 
sueeestion made to him by the orovernment. JNIoreover 
he has never complained that the government did not 
furnish him all the means and assistance in its power, to 
facilitate the execution of any plan he saw fit to adopt." 

When the news of this glorious victory officially reached 
the President, he wrote an autograph letter to General 
Grant, of which document the following is a copy: 

Executive Mansion, Washington, y«/y 13//^, 1863. 
To Major-General Grant : 

My Dear General: I do not remember that you and lever met 
personally. I write this now as a grateful acknowledgment for the almost 
inestimable service you have done the country. I wish to say a word fur- 
ther. When you first reached the vicinity of Vicksburg, I thought you 
should do what you finally did — march the troops across the neck, run 
the batteries with the transports, and thus go below ; and I never had 
any faith, except a general hope that you knew better than I, that the 
Yazoo Pass expedition and the like could succeed. When you got below 
and took Port Gibson, Grand Gulf, an(i vicinity, I thought you should go 
down the river and join General Banks; and when you turned northward 
east of the Big Black, I feared it was a mistake. I now wish to make a 
personal acknowledgment that you were right and I was wrong. 

Yours, very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

A newspaper of strong Southern proclivities, after the 
surrender of Vicksburg, wrote the following: 

"We pardon General Grant's smoking a cigar as he 
entered the smouldering ruins of the town of Vicksburg. 
A little stage effect is admissible in great captains, consid- 
ering that Napoleon at Milan wore the little cocked hat 
and sword of Marengo, and that snuft"" was the inevitable 
concomitant of victory in the great Frederick. General 
Grant is a noble fellow, and by the terms of capitulation 
he accorded to the heroic garrison showed himself as gen- 



'^^ ^^/i^^-t^^ ^ ^^^^^-Ca^, 









ViCKSBURG, Miss., 6"^//. 29M, 1863. 
Col. Markland— Z>^^r ^/>.— Having exhausted every other re- 
source for procuring a cow, I now send to you to get one of those at 
the Quartermaster's and Commissary's quarters. 
Yours truly, 

U. S. Grant, Maj.-Gen, 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 257 

erous as Napoleon was to Wurmser at the surrender of 
Mantua. His deed will read well in history, and he has 
secured to himself a name which posterity will pronounce 
with veneration and gratitude. There is no general in this 
country or in Europe that has done harder work than Gen- 
eral Grant, and none that has better graced his victories by 
the exercise of humanity and virtue. What we learn of the 
terms of capitulation is sufficient to prove General Grant 
to be a generous soldier and a man. A truly brave man 
respects bravery in others, and when the sword is sheathed 
considers himself free to follow the dictates of humanity. 
General Grant is not a general that marks his progress by 
proclamations to frighten unarmed men, women, and chil- 
dren ; he fulminates no arbitrary edicts against the press ; 
he does not make war on newspapers and their corre- 
spondents ; he flatters no one to get himself puffed ; but he 
is terrible in arms and magnanimous after the battle. Go 
on, brave General Grant; pursue the course you have 
marked out for }'Ourself, and Clio, the pensive muse, as she 
records your deeds, will rejoice at her manly theme." 

Among the results of the fall of Vicksburg is one that 
must not be overlooked — Port Hudson. As soon as the 
garrison had surrendered General Grant notified General 
Banks of the fact, and that officer at once imparted the 
glorious intelligence to his command. Like lightning the 
welcome news flew along the line, and the Union pickets 
joyously informed the Confederate sentinels that their 
boasted stronghold had fallen. It did not take long for the 
tidings to reach the enemy's head-quarters, and the same 
day the commandant at Port Hudson sent the following 
despatch to General Banks : 

Head-quarters, Port Hudson, \.k.,Jiily 'jth, 186 v 
General: Having received information from your troops that Vicks- 
btirg has been surrendei'ed, I make this communication to ask you to give 
me the official assurance whether this is true or not, aiid if true, I ask for 
a cessation of hostilities, with a view to the consideration of terms for sur- 
rendering this position. 

I am, General, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

Frank Gardner, 
Major- General commanding Confederate States forces, 
17 



258 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

General Banks, early the next morning, replied In the 
affirmative, and the following announces the result of the 
surrender: 

Head-quarters, Department of the Gulf, 
Nineteenth Army Corps, Port Hudson, ////)/ lo//^, 1863. 
To General H. W. Halleck : 

Sir : I have the honor to inform you that, with this post, there fell 
into our hands over five thousand five hundred prisoners, including one 
major-general and one brigadier-general ; twenty pieces of heavy artil- 
lery, five complete batteries, numbering thirty-one pieces of field artil- 
lery ; a good supply of projectiles for light and heavy guns, 44,800 pounds 
of cannon-powder, five thousand stand of arms, and one hundred and 
fifty thousand rounds of small-arm ammunition, besides a small amount 
of stores of various kinds. We captured also two steamers, one of which 
is very valuable. They will be of great service at this time. 
I am. General, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

N. P. Banks, Major- General Commanding, 

On the day that Grant received propositions for Pember- 
ton's surrender, he sent orders to Sherman to get his com- 
mand in readiness to march against Johnston's army; and on 
the 4th, as soon as the capture of the town was consummated, 
he sent Sherman in pursuit of the enemy outside. Johnston, 
however, fell back in haste when he heard of the fall of 
Vicksburg, and a hot chase was made, Sherman following 
as far as Jackson ; but thence Johnston escaped into the inte- 
rior, Sherman not pursuing farther. Great destruction was 
again made of railroads and resources, at and around Jack- 
son, and the undisturbed possession of the State of Missis- 
sippi was thus secured; Sherman then returned to Vicks- 
burg, and the troops were allowed a month or two of rest 
after their long labors in the trenches and the field. 

Honors, of course, were heaped upon Grant after this 
unprecedented triumph. He was made a major-general in 
the regular army; the President and the general-In-chief 
each wrote him letters of congratulation; the legislatures 
of various States passed resolutions of thanks ; swords 
were presented to him ; and his name passed to the head 
of all the defenders of the Union. 



CHAPTER VII. 

WAR OF THE REBELLION — Continued, 

Grant goes to New Orleans — Consults with Banks— Thrown from his horse — Rosecrans 
at Chattanooga — Grant assigned to the command of the Military Division of the 
Mississippi — Rosecrans relieved by Thomas — Army of the Cumberland besieged in 

Chattanooga — Grant telegraphs to Chattanooga— Bragg on Lookout Mountain 

Precarious situation of the Army of the Cumberland — Grant equal to the emergency 
— Re-possession of Lookout valley — Sherman approaching from Memphis — Prepa- 
rations for battle— Battle of Lookout Mountain — Battle of Chattanooga — Grant's 
generalship — Votes of thanks and a gold medal for General Grant — The grade of 
lieutenant-general revived — Grant ordered to Washington — Receives his commis- 
sion — Visits the Army of the Potomac — Assumes command of the armies of the 
United States — Joins the Army of the Potomac. 

In August General Grant went to New Orleans to con- 
sult with Banks about a combined movement against Mo- 
bile, which he still hoped he could persuade the govern- 
ment to allow ; and while there, he was thrown from his 
horse at a review, and received a hurt that lamed him for 
months. For twenty days he was confined to one position,, 
and while thus suffering, word came to him of great appre- 
hensions felt by the government for the safety of the Union, 
army at Chattanooga. 

This place, on the confines of Tennessee and Northern 
Georgia, and shut in by the Cumberland mountains and 
the Tennessee river, is at the junction of two great rail- 
roads, one passing north and south, the other east and 
west. It was parallel in military importance to Corinth 
farther west ; and, since the beginning of the war, the 
efforts of national commanders had been directed to secure 
its possession. If this were obtained, Richmond, the Con- 
federate capital, was cut off from all direct communication 
with the centre and west of the rebellious region. In 
September, by a series of masterly movements, Rosecrans 
succeeded in driving the enemy's army that defended Chat 

(259) 



260 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

tanooi^a a few miles south of it, and himself stepped in to 
occupy the town. But it was certain that the enemy would 
make an effort to regain the prize, and Grant was directed 
to send all his available force to the support of Rosecrans. 

Grant did not get these orders until his return from New 
Orleans, and, though still confined to his bed, at once 
despatched a whole corps under Sherman towards Chat- 
tanooga. All expedition was made for the movement, but 
the distance was nearly a thousand miles by the shortest 
route ; half of this was by the river, and transports had to 
be procured; then there were 400 miles to be marched 
through a hostile country. Long before Sherman could 
reach Rosecrans, the latter had been attacked by a superior 
force and driven into Chattanooga. The government be- 
came gready alarmed, and at once sent for Grant to take 
command of Rosecrans' army. He started, still a cripple, 
sailed up the Mississippi to Cairo, and then went by rail to 
Louisville ; on the way he met the secretary of war, and 
received from him an order placing him in command of all 
the armies west of the Alleghenies, except those of Banks 
in Louisiana and Texas. His immediate task was to secure 
Chattanooga and the army there, which was now besieged, 
and to relieve East Tennessee, where Burnside also was 
in great straits, in command of another and smaller army. 

He had now absolute command of 200,000 men ; but 
these were widely separated. He had a territory reaching 
from the Alleghenies to the Mississippi to hold and to 
guard, and large hostile armies to intercept and overthrow. 
At Chattanooga the army which Rosecrans had commanded 
was crowded into a small area south of the Tennessee, and 
encircled by mountains, on which the enemy, so lately vic- 
torious, were encamped ; there was but one railroad line 
of communication with this town, and that the enemy had 
just cut off; so that the solitary route by which all supplies 
could reach Chattanooija was a ruo^<red mountain road 
seventy miles long, and now almost impassable on account 
of heavy rains. The army was on half rations, 10,000 mules 
and horses had died of starvation, and there seemed no 
possibility of rescue. Burnside was 200 miles away in 




' L_ / o.^Sfe?aiRi\ 



^^■^ ?» ""'^''''''''"^^ AND CHATTANOOGA. SHOWING^ SOME 
IMPORTANT CAMPAIGNS UNOER GENERAL GRANT. 

(261) 



262 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

East Tennessee, equally isolated though not besieged ; and 
Sherman was in Mississippi, with 400 miles to march before 
he could relieve Chattanooga ; and even when he reached 
that place, unless the enemy were driven away, he would 
only add to the miseries of the Union troops, as those 
already there could not be supplied with either food or 
ammunition. This was the condition of affairs when Grant 
assumed his new command. 

His first act was to place General George H. Thomas in 
the posidon lately occupied by Rosecrans. Grant assumed 
command on the 19th of October, but could not reach Chat- 
tanooga on account of the break in communicadon, until 
the 23d. He telegraphed Thomas, however, on the 19th, 
"Hold Chattanooga at all hazards;" and Thomas replied, 
*' I will hold the town till we starve." Grant reached Chat- 
tanooga after dark, and that night was spent in looking 
over maps and studying the situation, apparendy the 
gloomiest one in which a commander could be placed. 

Next morning he made a reconnoissance of the country 
in the neighborhood of Lookout Mountain, and immediately 
gave directions for an aggressive movement in that direc- 
tion. Pordons of two corps from the Army of the Potomac 
had been sent by Halleck to relieve Rosecrans, some weeks 
before ; but these were still at Bridgeport, sixty miles away 
to the west, as their presence at Chattanooga would only 
serve to enhance the difficulties of supply. But Grant di- 
rected these troops, under Hooker, to move up to the 
western side of Lookout Mountain, which is only a mile or 
two in width, and at the same time ordered a co-operative 
movement from Chattanooga. Troops were sent on the 
night of the 27th, in boats, down the Tennessee, who eluded 
the Confederate pickets, till they reached a point called 
Brown's Ferry, on the south side of the river, some nine 
miles below the town. Here they landed, seized the ferry, 
drove in or captured the enemy's out-guards, and main- 
tained themselves while a bridge was laid, and a consider- 
able force, that had been sent on the north side of the 
river, could be moved across the bridge. By ten o'clock, 
on the 28th, the position was secured. On the morning of 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 263 

the 26th Hooker had moved from Bridgeport; at six on the 
evenincr of the 28th he had marched around the foot of 
Lookout Mountain without serious opposition, secured the 
railroad, and connected with the force at Brown's Ferry. 

The enemy, however, at once saw how important it was 
that this connection should be broken ; for, if Grant was 
able to maintain it, his railroad communication would be 
open again with the north, and supplies of men, ammuni- 
tion, and provisions could be sent him. Accordingly, that 
night they attacked Hooker in force, and a severe batde 
ensued, the result of which was that the enemy was driven 
off in confusion, and the railroad secured to Grant. The 
Union troops lost over four hundred men in killed and 
wounded, but the price was not too great to pay, for it 
secured the army in Chattanooga. Thus, in five days after 
Grant's arrival, the railroad to Nashville was opened, and 
the immediate danger repelled. Bragg, indeed, was now 
on the defensive, not Grant; for Hooker's posidon threat- 
ened Lookout Mountain, and it was certain that as soon as 
supplies and ammunition could be procured, an offensive 
operation w^ould begin. The army and the country were 
electrified at this immediate effect of Grant's presence, this 
reversal of the entire situation ; while the enemy were 
chagrined In an equal degree. 

Still, Grant's difficulties were gigandc. Burnslde's 
twenty-five thousand men were a hundred miles from any 
navigable river by which they could be supplied, and farther 
yet from a railroad ; they had to be supplied by a route 
over six hundred miles long; while Sherman, In his march 
from the Mississippi, had to be met with provisions at 
various points ; and all these lines of supply ran through a 
hostile country. Grant directed and superintended these 
operations as closely as he did the tactical movements in a 
batde ; he even instructed Sherman what roads he should 
take; he sent word to Admiral Porter to convoy the 
steamers that carried supplies, and that officer, never hesi- 
tating, furnished the protection desired. 

But, on the 4th of November, Bragg, feeling the ne- 
cessity of doing something to compensate for the disaster 



264 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

he had Incurred at Brown's Ferry, sent an entire corps, 
under Longstreet, into East Tennessee, to destroy Burn- 
side. Grant got word of the movement at once, and his 
situation became vastly more complicated. If Sherman 
had been up, he would have rejoiced at Bragg's movement, 
for he should at once have attacked the enemy in his front, 
now weakened by this abstraction. But the strength of 
Bragg's position, on the precipitous ridge and on the lofty 
crest of Lookout, was such, that no assault could be made 
until further reinforcements arrived. Meanwhile, Burnside 
was in immediate peril. 

Grant at once despatched word to Sherman of this new 
danger, and urged him to increased speed. Still, Sher- 
man's difficulties were great ; he had rivers to cross where 
there were no bridges, mountains to climb, enemies to 
meet; but, on the 13th of November, he reached Bridge- 
port with his command, and was summoned at once in per- 
son to Chattanooga. 

The battle-field of Chattanooga is an irregular field, 
with Missionary Ridge on the east and the Tennessee river 
on the west. On what w^as Grant's left, Chickamauga 
creek empties into the Tennessee, and at the extreme right 
is Lookout Mountain ; both extremities were in the hands 
of the enemy. Grant's plan was to bring Sherman along 
the north side of the river, from Brown's Ferry to the point 
opposite Chickamauga creek, then to cross this portion of 
the command so as to form his new left; Ihomas was to 
be the centre, and to attack Missionary Ridge directly in 
his front; while Hooker, on the right, would assail and 
carry Lookout Mountain. Sherman's principal endeavor 
was to be to reach and turn the northern extremity of 
Missionary Ridge, behind wliich was Chickamauga Station, 
on the southern railroad, where Bragg's base and depot of 
supplies were situated ; Sherman was to move up from 
Brown's Ferry along a road concealed from the enemy by 
the opposite mountains; but as Bragg seemed to be ex- 
pecting an attack on his left flank, Grant ordered Sherman 
to confirm this notion, by advancing one division in that 
direction, and building large camp-fires there at night. 



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(265) 



266 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

At this crisis, Grant got word that Burnside and Long- 
street had really begun the battle for the possession of 
East Tennessee, and still Sherman was delayed by more 
rains, and freshets, and broken bridges. In consequence 
of these obstacles, Sherman did not arrive at his post on 
the north side of the Tennessee until the 23d of November. 

During the night of the 2 2d, however, a deserter from 
Brao-o's army brought news that a division of the enemy 
was being sent to Longstreet ; and Grant had other rea- 
sons for supposing that Bragg might be intending to fall 
back from Missionary Ridge. He accordingly ordered an 
advance by Thomas to ascertain the truth of this report. 
It would not do to let Bragg escape, without the batde for 
which the national commander had been waiting and pre- 
paring so long. Thomas accordingly moved a whole corps 
forward to develop the strength of the enemy. The move- 
ment was measured, and the enemy so little anticipated it, 
that even after the troops were in line, the enemy leaned 
lazily on their muskets, mistaking the advance for a parade. 
They were soon undeceived by a heavy fire of musketry, 
and in fifteen minutes their whole advanced line of rifle-pits 
was carried, and nothing remained in the possession of the 
enemy west of the rifle-pits but the line at the foot of the 
ridge. Intrenchments were at once thrown up by Grant, 
protecting the ground thus gained, and Thomas' whole 
army was moved forward about a mile. Only one hundred 
men had been killed or wounded, but over two hundred 
of the enemy were captured. This success infused great 
animation into the Army of the Cumberland. 

Meanwhile Sherman was laboring up on the north bank 
of the Tennessee, where pontoon boats were hidden in the 
creeks that empty from that side of the river; and during 
the night of the 23d these were floated to the enemy's 
picket-station, at the mouth of the Chickamauga. Troops 
were landed, the enemy's pickets seized, intrenchments 
thrown up, and by daylight eight thousand Union soldiers 
were ashore. Immediately the building of the bridge 
began. At twenty minutes past twelve o'clock it was com- 
plete, and at one o'clock Sherman began his march at the 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 267 

head of twenty thousand men for the northern end of 
Missionary Ridge. He began the fight by three and a 
half, pushed his troops up the hill, and before night had 
gained possession of an important hill which he had sup- 
posed was the extremity of Missionary Ridge ; this, how- 
ever, he discovered to be separated from the ridge by a 
deep ravine, which would cost him dear to cross. He in- 
trenched, however, during the night, preparing for his 
grand attack on the morrow. 

Thom.as' command this day remained in the position that 
had been gained the day before, waiting for the two wings 
of the grand army to get into position for the combined 
effort which Grant intended to make. Hooker, meanwhile, 
had moved his troops against Lookout Mountain with 
energy and skill ; and Bragg, who had become alarmed at 
Thomas' dispositions the day before, withdrew a portion of 
his force on the mountain to reinforce his centre and right. 
This rendered Hooker's task easier, and by four o'clock he 
had climbed the mountain, in spite of prodigious natural 
difficulties, carried important works at its base and on the 
sides, and established important connection with the right 
of Thomas' command. Thomas also connected on his left 
with Sherman, so that, on the night of the 24th, Grant's 
line was all advanced and in direct communication. Battles 
had been fought by the centre and each wing, and each 
had been successful. Hooker's fi^ht had thus far been 
the hardest, and late in the afternoon his progress was ob- 
scured from those in the valley by heavy clouds that set- 
tled on the mountain side, so that his troops seemed fight- 
ing in mid-air. That night the enemy evacuated the crest 
of the mountain, falling back on Bragg, and early in the 
morning the stars and stripes waved on the summit of 
Lookout. 

Grant was busy all nio-ht sending- directions to his three 
armies. He directed Sherman and Hooker to advance at 
dawn, each attracting as much force of the enemy as pos- 
sible to one extremity, and when this was accomplished 
Thomas was to attack the weakened centre. Grant him- 
self remained on a mound near Thomas' command, from 



268 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

which he could watch all the evolutions in the field. He 
was so near to Missionary Ridge, that when day dawned 
Bragg's head-quarters could be plainly seen. 

Sherman began his attack shortly after daylight. The 
ground in his front was extremely difficult, and had been 
strongly fortified. It was held in great force, for it was the 
key-point of the field. If this height was carried the Con- 
federate army was cut off from its base, and from all com- 
munication with other portions of the Confederacy. Sher- 
man assaulted with great vigor and gained some ground; 
after this he repeatedly advanced, and was more than once 
repelled, losing, however, none of the ground originally 
seized. The fight here was fierce and stubborn, and Bragg 
repeatedly sent large reinforcements to maintain the posi- 
tion. Hooker, too, descended from Lookout Mountain to 
move against Bragg's new left. The enemy, retreating 
from the mountain in the night, however, had destroyed all 
the bridges, so that Hooker was delayed undl nearly two 
o'clock before he reached the ridge. Sherman, meanwhile, 
was bearing the brunt of the batde, and Grant finally per- 
ceiving the enemy in a large column moving towards 
Sherman, he determined that the hour had come for 
Thomas to advance. 

Accordingly he himself gave the order, and two whole 
corps moved forward in one grand line against Missionary 
Ridge. Sherman fighting on the north end, not five miles 
away, Hooker in the plain to the south, and here, at 
Grant's feet, four divisions of men on the run, their bayo- 
nets glancing in the afternoon sun. The enemy at the foot 
of the hill were unable to resist the effect of this waving, 
glittering mass of steel ; they flung themselves in the 
trenches, and the national troops passed over, sending 
their prisoners hurriedly to the rear across the open plain. 
The order had been for the men to halt when the first line 
of pits was carried, and to reform before they attempted to 
mount the hill ; but now their blood was up, and it was im 
possible to restrain them. A tremendous fire of artillery 
poured down upon theni from the ridge, nearly five hundred 
feet high, and half way up was another line of trenches, 



DIAGRAM I. 




WAT^PS-SOV.yy. 



DIAGRAMS SHOWING THE POSITIONS OF THE ARMIES AT THE BATTLES 
OF CHICKAMAUGA AND MISSIONARY RIDGE. 



270 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

from which more deadly musketry now struck down many 
a gallant soldier. But the line stopped not for this ; the 
flags went on in advance, first one ahead and then another, 
and at last all along the ridge Grant's colors were planted 
on the enemy's line. Still there was another line of works 
on the crest, and now the ascent became almost perpen- 
dicular. The storm of musketry and artillery became 
miore furious, but the men lay on their faces to avoid it, 
working their way thus up the front of the mountain. 

The enemy was seized at once with a panic which all the 
exertions of Bragg and his officers could not restrain ; here 
and there a slight resistance was offered, but the great 
mass of the enemy's army went tumbling in confusion 
down the eastern side of the ridge, the national soldiers 
not even stopping to reload their pieces, but driving the 
enemy with stones. At this moment Hooker appeared on 
the enemy's left and completed the rout ; Bragg was 
obliged not only to give up the ground in front of Thomas 
and Hooker, but to withdraw his right, which still offered 
resistance to Sherman. Grant had ridden up at once on 
the ridge fo direct the pursuit, and forty pieces of artillery 
were captured in the open field. Sheridan, then a division 
commander in Thomas' army, pursued for seven miles. 
Six thousand prisoners were taken before morning. Look- 
out Mountain, Missionary Ridge, and all the rifle-pits in 
Chattanooga valley were Grant's. The great Confederate 
army that had threatened him so long was routed and in 
disgraceful flight, and early on the 26th Sherman took 
possession of Chickamauga Station. 

That day and the next the pursuit was continued, Hooker 
in the advance. Everywhere the road was strewn with the 
wrecks of the dissolving army. On the 27th Hooker came 
up with Bragg's rear-guard at a gap in the mountains, and 
here the enemy made his last stand. A fight of several 
hours occurred, but the enemy finally withdrew, leaving the 
place in the hands of Grant, who now directed the pursuit 
to be discontinued. It was necessary to send reinforce- 
ments at once to Burnside. 

Grant lost in this series of battles seven hundred and 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 2*Jl 

fifty-seven killed, four thousand five hundred and twenty- 
nine wounded, and three hundred and thirty missing; the 
enemy, three hundred and sixty-one killed, two thousand 
one hundred and eighty wounded, and over six thousand 
prisoners, besides forty cannon. Their loss in killed and 
wounded was smaller, because they fought with every im- 
aginable advantage of cover and position. They had forty- 
five thousand men engaged, and Grant had about sixty 
thousand ; but the extraordinary position they occupied 
was worth to them, according to all the rules of the military 
art, five times an equal number of assailants. Bragg said, 
in his official report of the fight, that the strength of the 
position was such that a line of skirmishers ought to have 
maintained it against any assaulting column. 

The news of the splendid victories in Tennessee filled 
the loyal States with rejoicing. Mr. Lincoln appointed a 
day of thanksgiving *'for this great advancement of the 
national cause ; " while Congress, in grateful appreciation 
of the glorious victories he had gained, passed a joint reso- 
lution of thanks to General Grant and the troops which 
had fought under him. They also ordered a gold medal, 
with suitable emblems and devices, to be struck and pre- 
sented to him, and Legislatures of various States presented 
him with a vote of thanks. But, better than all this, a 
movement was at once set on foot by the Hon. E. B. 
Washburne, member of Congress from Illinois, to revive 
the grade of lieutenant-general, and to call General Grant 
to the chief command of all the armies of the United States. 
On the 1st of March, 1864, this bill became a law by the 
approval of President Lincoln. A resolution requesting 
Mr. Lincoln to appoint General Grant was also passed by 
Congress. On the next day Mr. Lincoln sent to the Senate 
the nomination of Ulysses S. Grant, to be lieutenant-gen- 
eral. The nomination was confirmed at once, and an order 
was sent directing Grant to repair to Washington for the 
purpose of receiving his commission. Before leaving Nash- 
ville he wrote to Sherman, his faithful lieutenant: 

" Whilst I have been eminently successful in this war, in 
at least gaining the confidence of the public, no one feels 



272 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

more than I do how much of this success is due to the 
energy, skill, and the harmonious putting forth of that 
energy and skill, of those whom it has been my good for- 
tune to have occupying subordinate positions under me. 
There are many officers to whom these remarks are appli- 
cable to a greater or less degree, proportionate to their 
ability as soldiers ; but what 1 want, is to express my thanks 
to you and McPherson as the men to whom, above all 
others, I feel indebted for whatever 1 have had of success. 
How far your advice and assistance have been of help to 
me, you know ; how far your execution of whatever has 
been given you to do entides you to the reward I am re- 
ceiving, you cannot know as well as I. I feel all the grati- 
tude this letter would express, giving it the most flattering 
construction." 

This letter was intended as much for McPherson as for 
Sherman, and while it reflects the highest credit upon the 
magnanimous heart of the writer, it does those able and 
gallant generals no more than simple justice. Grant had 
that about him which drew true men irresistibly towards 
him, causing them to cheerfully exert their entire strength 
in the performance of the duties assigned them. No man 
was ever more devotedly or worthily served by those who 
came within his immediate influence, and no man ever re- 
warded merit more unselfishly or prompdy. 

Sherman, in replying to Grant's letter, says : 

"You do yourself injusdce, and us too much honor, in 
assigning to us too large a share of the merits which have 
led to your high advancement. I know you approve the 
friendship I have ever professed to you, and will permit me 
to continue to manifest it on all proper occasions. 

" You are now Washinorton's lecritimate successor, and 
occupy a position of almost dangerous elevation ; but 11 
you can continue as heretofore, to be yourself, simple, hon- 
est and unpretending, you will enjoy through life the re- 
spect and love of friends and the homage of millions of 
human beings, that will award you a large share in securing 
to them and their descendants a government of law and 
stability. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 273 

"I repeat, you do McPherson and myself too much 
honor. At Belmont you manifested your traits — neither 
of us being near. At Donelson, also, you illustrated your 
whole character. I was not near, and McPherson in too 
subordinate a capacity to influence you. 

"Until you had won Donelson, I confess I was almost 
cowed by the terrible array of anarchical elements that pre- 
sented themselves at every point; but that admitted a ray 
of light, which I have followed since. 

" 1 believe you are as brave, patriotic and just as the 
great prototype, Washington ; as unselfish, kind-hearted 
and honest as a man should be; but the chief characteristic 
is the simple faith in success you have always manifested, 
which I can liken to nothing else than the faith the Chris- 
tian has in the Saviour. 

"This faith gave you victory at Shiloh and Vicksburg. 
Also, when you have completed your best preparations, 
you go into batde without hesitation, as at Chattanooga — 
no doubts, no answers — and I tell you, it was this that made 
us act with confidence. I knew wherever I was, that you 
thought of me ; and if I got in a tight place you would help 
me out if alive. 

" My only point of doubt was in your knowledge of 
grand strategy, and of books of science and history ; but I 
confess your common sense seems to have supplied all 
these. 

" Now as to the future. Don't stay in Washington. 
Come West; take to yourself the whole Mississippi Valley. 
Let us make it dead sure ; and I tell you the Adantic slopes 
and Pacific shores will follow its destiny as sure as the limbs 
of a tree live or die with the main trunk. We have done 
much, but still much remains. Time and dme's influences 
are with us. We could almost afford to sit sdll and let 
these influences work. Here lies the seat of coming em- 
pire ; and from the West, where our task is done, we will 
make short work of Charleston and Richmond, and the im- 
poverished coast of the Atlantic." 
is 



CHAPTER VIII. 

WAR OF THE REBELLION CoutimCed. 

Grant with the Army of the Potomac — The situation of military affairs — General Grant's 
plan of operaiions — Builer's and Sigel's positions — Lee at Orange Court-House — 
Grant's instructions to General Meade — The engagement at Parker's Store — Wilson 
encounters Stuart's cavalry — The battle of the Wilderness — Sheridan's operations — 
Alsop's Farm — Spottsylvania Court-House — Death of General Sedgwick — Han- 
cock's success — Cold Harbor — Sheridan's raid — Burnside's and Sigel's co-operative 
movements — Hunter's and Sheridan's operations in the Shenandoah Valley. 

On the Sth of March Grant arrived at the capital, and 
the next day, at one o'clock, he was received by the Presi- 
dent in the Cabinet Chamber. The different Cabinet offi- 
cers, General Halleck, and a few other persons were there 
by the President's invitation. General Grant was accom- 
panied by an aid-de-camp, Colonel Comstock, and General 
Rawlins, his chief-of-staff, and after being introduced to the 
Cabinet was addressed as follows, by the President : 

" Gp:neral Grant: — The expression of the nation's ap- 
probation of wdiat you have already done, and its reliance 
on you for what remains to be cione in the existing great 
struggle, are now presented with this commission, consti- 
tuting you Lieutenant-General in the Army of the United 
States. With this high honor devolves on you an addi- 
tional responsibihty. As the country herein trusts you, so, 
under God, it will sustain you. I scarcely need to add, that 
with what I here speak for the nation, goes my own hearty 
personal concurrence." 

General Grant replied with feeling: 

" Mr. President: — I accept the commission with grati- 
tude for the high honor conferred. With the aid of the 
noble armies that have fougln on so many battle-fields for 
our common country, it will be my earnest endeavor not to 
disappoint your expectations. I feel the full weight of the 

(274) 



276 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

responsibilities now devolving on me ; and I know that if 
they are met, it will be due to those armies, and, above all, 
to the favor of that Providence which leads both nations 
and men." 

The next day the President assigned the new lieutenant- 
general to the command of all the armies, with his head- 
quarters in the field. Grant made a hurried trip to the 
Army of the Potomac at Culpeper Court-House, to confer 
with General Meade, and then returned to Nashville for 
the purpose of making arrangements to enter upon the 
performance of the duties of his new position. Here, on 
the 17th day of March, he issued his order assuming com- 
mand of the armies of the United States, and announced 
that till further notice his head-quarters would be with the 
Army of the Potomac. At his request the Secretary of 
War had already assigned Sherman to the Military Divi- 
sion of the Mississippi, including the Department of Ar- 
kansas in addition to those departments already within it; 
McPherson succeeded Sherman in the command of the 
Department of the Tennessee ; and, as a matter of course, 
Halleck, who had so long filled the place of general-in- 
chief, was relieved from that position. He was, however, 
soon afterwards assigned to duty in Washington by Gen- 
eral Grant as chief-oi-staff of the army, for which position, 
charged with the details of military administration, it was 
thou^^ht, his capacities peculiarly fitted him. 

On the 23d of March, Grant arrived at Washington, and 
on the next day he took actual command — his first act 
being to reorganize the Army of the Potomac by consoli- 
dating it into three corps — to be known thereafter as the 
Second, I^fth, and Sixth, to be commanded respectively by 
Major-Generals Hancock, Warren, and Sedgwick. The 
Ninth corps, under Burnside, lately from East Tennessee, 
had been reorganized at Annapolis, and was added to the 
Army of the Potomac, but acted for a time independendy 
, of Meade, on account of Burnside's older commission. 
Generals Barlow, Gibbon, Birney, J. B. Carr, Wadsworth, 
Crawford, Robinson, Griffin, Wright, and Prince, com- 
manded divisions. The cavalry of the army was consoli- 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 277 

dated Into a corps under General Sheridan, with Generals 
Gregg, Torbert, and Wilson commanding divisions. These 
officers had all distinguished themselves In the war, and 
were selected for their services and their zeal in the 
national cause. 

The staff organization of the Army of the Potomac re- 
mained unchanged, with Brigadier-General H. J. Hunt as 
Chief of Artillery; Major J. C. Duane, Chief of Engineers ; 
Brigadier-General Rufus Ingalls, Chief Quartermaster. 
Major-General A. A. Humphreys, an able officer of engi- 
neers, distinguished also as a division commander, was 
Chlef-of-Staff; while Brigadier-General Seth Williams was 
Adjutant- General. 

The law creating the grade of lieutenant-general enabled 
Grant to reorganize his own staff also. General Rawlins, 
his constant companion from the beginning of the war, was 
retained as Chlef-of-Staff, and Colonel T. S. Bowers as 
Adjutant-General ; Colonel Wilson, his Inspector-General, 
who had been promoted to be brigadier-general after 
Chattanooga, and had been ordered to Washington for the 
purpose of reorganizing the Cavalry Bureau, was assigned 
to the command of a division under Sheridan. His place 
on the staff was filled by Colonel Comstock of the Engi- 
neer corps; Colonel Horace Porter and Colonel O. E. 
Babcock, two young officers of the regular army, who had 
already given great promise of usefulness and ability, were 
designated as Alds-de-Camp ; while Colonels Adam Badeau 
and Ely S. Parker (a hereditary chief of the Six Nations) 
were assigned as Military Secretaries. 

No clearer statement of the situation of military affairs, 
or of the plan of operations adopted for the future conduct 
of the war can be made, than that given in General Grant's 
own words : 

" From an early period In the rebellion," he says, in his 
comprehensive and admirable report, 'T had been impressed 
with the idea that active and continuous operations of all 
the troops that could be brought into the field, regardless' 
of season and weather, were necessary to a speedy termin- 
ation of the war. The resources of die enemy and his 



278 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

numerical strength were far inferior to ours ; but, as an off- 
set to this, we had a vast territory, with a population hostile 
to the government, to garrison, and long lines of river and 
railroad communications to protect, to enable us to supply 
the operating armies. 

"The arniies in the East and West acted independently, 
and without concert, like a balky team — no two ever pulling 
together — enabling the enemy to use to great advantage 
his interior lines of communicadon for transporting troops 
from East to West, reinforcing the army most vigorously 
pressed, and to furlough large numbers during seasons of 
inactivity on our part, to go to their homes and do the 
work of providing for the support of their armies. It was 
a question whether our numerical strength and resources 
were not more than balanced by these disadvantages and 
the enemy's superior posidon. 

" From the first I was firm in the convicdon that no peace 
could be had that would be stable and conducive to the 
happiness of the people, both North and South, until the 
military power of the rebellion was entirely broken. 

'' 1 therefore determined, first, to use the greatest number 
of troops pracdcable against the armed force of the enemy, 
prevennng him from using the same force at different 
seasons against first one and then another of our armies, 
and the possibility of repose for refitting and producing 
necessary supplies for carrying on resistance ; second, to 
hammer continuously against the armed force of the enemy 
and his resources, until, by mere attridon, if in no other 
way, there should be nothing left to him but an equal sub- 
mission with the loyal secdons of our common country to 
the constitution and laws of the land. 

"These views have been kept constandy in mind, and 
orders given and campaigns made to carry them out. 
Whether they might have been better in concepdon and 
execudon is for the people, who mourn the loss of friends 
fallen, and who have to pay the pecuniary cost, to say. 
All I can say is, that what I have done has been done con- 
scientiously, to the best of my ability, and in what I con- 
ceived to be for the best interests of the whole country. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 2/9 

"At the date when this report begins, the situation of the 
contending forces was about as follows: The Mississippi 
river was strongly garrisoned by Federal troops from St. 
Louis, Missouri, to its mouth. The line of the Arkansas 
was also held, thus giving us armed possession of all west 
of the Mississippi north of that stream. A few points in 
Southern Louisiana, not remote from the river, were held 
by us, together with a small garrison at and near the mouth 
of the Rio Grande. All the balance of the vast territory 
of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas, was in the almost un- 
disputed possession of the enemy, with an army of probably 
not less than 80,000 effective men that could have been 
brought into the field, had there been sufficient opposition 
to have brought them out. The let-alone-policy had de- 
moralized this force so that probably but little more than 
one-half of it was ever present in garrison at any one time. 
But the one-half, or 40,000 men, with the bands of guerrillas 
scattered through Missouri, Arkansas, and alono- the Mis- 
sissippi river, and the disloyal character of much of the 
population, compelled the use of a large number of troops 
to keep navigation open on the river, and to protect the 
loyal people to the west of it. To the east of the Missis- 
sippi we held substantially with the line of the Tennessee 
and Holston rivers, running eastward to include nearly all 
of the State of Tennessee. South of Chattanooga a small 
foothold had been obtained in Georgia, sufficient to protect 
East Tennessee from incursions from the enemy's force at 
Dalton, Georgia. West Virginia was substantially within 
our lines. Virginia, with the exception of the northern 
border, the Potomac river, a small area about the mouth of 
James river covered by the troops at Norfolk and Fort 
Monroe, and the territory covered by the Army of the 
Potomac lying along the Rapidan, was in the possession 
of the enemy. Along the sea-coast, footholds had been 
obtained at Plymouth, Washington, and Newbern, in North 
Carolina; Beaufort, Foll3^ and Morris islands, Hilton Head, 
Fort Pulaski, and Port Royal, in South Carolina; P>r- 
nandina and St. Augustine, in Florida. Key West and 
Pensacola were also in our possession, while all the im- 
portant ports were blockaded by the navy. 



ZSO. LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

" Behind the Union hnes there were many bands of 
guerillas, and a large population disloyal to the govern- 
ment, making it necessary to guard every foot of road or 
river used in supplying our armies. In the South a reign 
of military despotism prevailed, which made every man and 
boy capable of bearing arms a soldier, and those who could 
not bear arms in the field acted as provosts for collecting 
deserters and returning them. This enabled the enemy to 
bring almost his entire strength into the field. 

" The enemy had concentrated the bulk of his forces east 
of the Mississippi Into two armies, commanded by Generals 
R. E. Lee and J. E. Johnston, his ablest and best generals. 
The army commanded by Lee occupied the south bank of 
the Rapidan, extending from Mine Run westward, strongly 
Intrenched in position at Dalton, Georgia, covering and de- 
fending Adanta, Georgia, a place of great importance as a 
railroad centre, against the armies under Major-General 
W. T. Sherman. In addition to these armies, he had a 
large cavalry force under Forrest in Northeast Mississippi ; 
a considerable force, of all arms, in the Shenandoah valley, 
and In the western part of Virginia and extreme eastern 
part of Tennessee; and also confronting our sea-coast gar- 
risons, and holding blockaded ports where we had no foot- 
hold upon land. 

"These two armies, and the cities covered and de- 
fended by them, were the main objective points of the 
campaign. 

" Major-General W. T. Sherman, who was appointed to 
the command of the military division of the Mississippi, 
embracing all the armies and territory east of the Missis- 
sippi river to the Alleghenles, and the department of 
Arkansas, west of the Mississippi, had the Immediate com- 
mand of the armies operating against Johnston. 

" Major-General George G. Meade had the Immediate 
command of the Army of the Potomac, from where I exer- 
cised general supervision of the movements of all our 



armies 



"General Sherman was instructed to move against John- 
ston's army, to break It up, and to go into the Interior of 




GRANT WRITING DESPATCH WHILE ARMY WAS CROSSING THE RAPIDAN. 




THE LAST CAVALRY CHARGE OF THE WAR. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 251 

the enemy's country as far as he could, Inflicting all the 
damage he could upon their war resources. If the enemy 
in his front showed signs of joining Lee, to follow him up 
to the full extent of his ability, while I would prevent the 
concentration of Lee upon him if it was in the power of the 
Army of the Potomac to do so. More specific written 
instructions were not given, for the reason that I had talked 
over with him the plans of the campaign, and was satisfied 
that he understood them and would execute them to the 
fullest extent possible. 

" Major- General N. P. Banks, then on an expedition up 
Red river against Shreveport, Louisiana (which had been 
organized previous to my appointment to command), was 
notified by me, on the 15th of March, of the importance it 
was that Shreveport should be taken at the earliest pos- 
sible day, and that if he found that the taking of it would 
occupy from ten to fifteen days' more time than General 
Sherman had given his troops to be absent from their 
command, he would send them back at the time specified 
by General Sherman, even if it led to the abandonment of 
the main object of the Red river expedition, for this force 
was necessary to movements east of the Mississippi ; that 
should his expedition prove successful, he would hold 
Shreveport and the Red river with such force as he might 
deem necessary, and return the balance of his troops to the 
nelorhborhood of New Orleans, commencinof no move for 
the further acquisition of territory unless it was to make 
that then held by him more easily held ; that it might be a 
part of the spring campaign to move against Mobile ; that 
It certainly would be if troops enough could be obtained to 
make it without embarrassing other movements ; that New 
Orleans would be the point of departure for such an ex- 
pedition ; also, that I had directed General Steele to make 
a real move from Arkansas, as suggested by him (General 
Banks), Instead of a demonstration, as Steele thought 
advisable. 

" On the 2 1 St of March, in addition to the foregoing noti- 
fication and directions, he was instructed as follows : 

I. If successful in your expedition against Shreveport, 



« ( 



252 LIFE. OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

that you turn over the defence of the Red river to General 
Steele and the navy. 

" * 2. That you abandon Texas entirely, with the exception 
of your hold upon the Rio Grande. This can be held with 
4,000 men, If they will turn their attention Immediately to 
fortifying their poslticns. At least one-half of the force 
required for this service might be taken from the colored 
troops. 

"'3. By properly fortifying on the Mississippi river, the 
force to guard It from Port Hudson to New Orleans can be 
reduced to 10,000 men, If not to a less number; 6,000 more 
would then hold all the rest of the territory necessary to 
hold until active operations can be resumed west of the 
river. According to your last return, this would give you 
a force of over 30,000 effective men with which to move 
against Mobile. To this I expect to add 5,000 men from 
Missouri. If, however, you think the force here stated too 
small to hold the territory regarded as necessary to hold 
possession of, I would say, concentrate at least 25,000 men 
of your present command for operations against Mobile. 
With these, and such additions as I can eive you from else- 
where, lose no time In making a demonstration, to be fol- 
lowed by an attack upon Mobile. Two or more ironclads 
will be ordered to report to Admiral Farragut. This gives 
him a strong naval fleet with which to co-operate. You can 
make your own arrangements with the Admiral for his co- 
operation, and select your own line of approach. My own 
Idea of the matter Is, that Pascagoula should be your base; 
but, from your long service In the Gulf department, you 
will know best about the matter. It is intended that your 
movements shall be co-operative with movements elsewhere, 
and you cannot now start too soon. All I would now add 
Is, that you commence the concentration of your forces at 
once. Preserve a profound secrecy of what you intend 
doing, and start at the earliest possible moment.' 

" Major-General Meade was Instructed that Lee's army 
would be his objective point; that wherever Lee went he 
would go also. For his movement two plans presented 
themselves : — one to cross the Rapldan below Lee, moving 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 283 

by his right flank ; the other above, moving by his left. 
Each presented advantages over the other, with corre- 
sponding objections. By crossing above, Lee would be cut 
off from all chance of ignoring Richmond or going North 
on a raid. But if w^e took this route, all we did would have 
to be done whilst the rations we started with held out; be- 
sides it separated us from Butler, so that he could not be 
directed how to co-operate. If w^e took the other route, 
Brandy Station could be used as a base of supplies until 
another was secured on the York or James rivers. Of 
these, however, it was decided to take the lower route. 

*' The following letter of instructions w^as addressed to 
Major-General B. F. Butler: 

''Fort Monroe, Va., Apr-il 2, 1864. 

" ' General : In the spring campaign, which it is desirable shall com- 
mence at as early a day as practicable, it is proposed to have co-operative 
action of all the armies in the field, as far as this object can be accom- 
plished. 

'* ' It will not be possible to unite onr armies into two or three large 
ones, to act as so many units, owing to the absolute necessity of holding 
on to the territory already taken from the enemy. But, generally speaking, 
concentration can be practically effected by armies moving to the interior 
of the enemy's country from the territory they have to guard. By such 
movement they interpose themselves between the enemy and the country 
to be guarded, thereby reducing the number necessary to guard important 
points, or at least occupy the attention of a part of the enemy's force, if 
no greater object is gained. Lee's army and Richmond being the greater 
objects towards which our attention must be directed in the next campaign, 
it is desirable to unite all the force we can against them. The necessity 
of covering Washington with the Army of the Potomac, and of covering 
your department with your army, makes it impossible to unite these forces 
at the beginning of any move. I propose, therefore, what comes nearest 
this of anything that seems practicable : The Army of the Potomac will 
act from its present base, Lee's army being the objective point. You will 
collect all the forces from your command that can be spared from garrison 
duty — I should say not less than 20,000 effective men — to operate on the 
south side of James river, Richmond being your objective point. To the 
force you already have will be added about 10,000 men from South Caro- 
lina, under Mnjor-General Gilmore, who will command them in person. 
Major-General'W. F. Smith is ordered to report to you, to command the 
troops sent into the field from your own department. 

*' ' General Gilmore will be ordered to report to you at Fortress Monroe, 
with all the troops on transports, by the i8th instant, or as soon thereafter 
as practicable. Should you not receive notice by that time to move, you 



284 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

will make such disposition of them and your other forces as you may 
deem best calculated to deceive the enemy as to the real move to be 
made. 

'' ' When you are notified to move, take City Point with as much force 
as possible. Fortify, or rather intrench at once, and concentrate all your 
troops for the field there as rapidly as you can. From City Point, direc- 
tions cannot be given at this time for your further movements. 

*' 'The fact that has already been stated — that is, that Richmond is to 
be your objective point, and that there is to be co-operation between your 
force and the Army of the Potomac — must be your guide. This indicates 
the necessity of your holding close to the south bank of the James river 
as you advance. Then, should the enemy be forced into his intrench- 
ments in Richmond, the Army of the Potomac would follow, and by 
means of transports the two armies would be a unit. 

" *All the minor details of your advance are left entirely to your direc- 
tion. If, however, you think it practicable to use your cavalry south of 
you, so as to cut the railroad about Hick's Ford about the time of the 
general advance, it would be of immense advantage. 

'< 'You will please forward, for my information, at the earliest practi- 
cable day, all orders, details, and instructions you may give for the exe- 
cution of this order.' 

"On the 1 6th these Instructions were substantially re- 
iterated. On the 19th, in order to secure full co-operation 
between his army and that of General Meade, he was in- 
formed that I expected him to move from Fort Monroe the 
same day that General Meade moved from Culpeper. The 
exact time I was to telegraph him as soon as it was fixed, 
and that it would not be earlier than the 27th of April ; that 
it was my intention to fight Lee between Culpeper and 
Richmond if he would stand. Should he, however, fall 
back into Richmond, I would follow up, and make a junction 
with his (General Butlers) army on the James river; that, 
could I be certain he would be able to invest Richmond on 
the south side so as to have his left resting on the James, 
above the city, I would form a junction there ; that circum- 
stances might make this course advisable anyhow; that he 
should use every exertion to secure footing as far up the 
south side of the river as he could, and as soon as possible, 
after the receipt of orders to move ; that if he could not 
carry the city, he should at least detain as large a force as 
possible. 

" In co-operation with the main movements against Lee 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 285 

and Johnston, I was desirous of using all other troops nec- 
essarily kept in departments remote from the fields of im- 
mediate operations, and also those kept in the background 
for the protection of our extended lines between the loyal 
States and the armies operating against them. 

" A very considerable force, under command of Major- 
General Sigel, was so held for the protection of West Vir- 
ginia, and the frontiers of Maryland and Pennsylvania. 
Whilst these troops could not be withdrawn to distant 
fields without exposing the North to invasion by compara- 
tively small bodies of the enemy, they could act direcdy to 
their front and give better protection than if lying idle in 
garrison. By such movement they would either compel 
the enemy to detach largely for the protection of his sup- 
plies and lines of communication, or he would lose them. 

" General Sigel was therefore directed to organize all his 
available force into two expedidons, to move from Beverly 
and Charleston, under command of Generals Ord and 
Crook, against the East Tennessee and Virginia railroad. 
Subsequently, General Ord having been relieved at his own 
request. General Sigel was instructed, at his own suggestior, 
to give up the expedition by Beverly, and to form two col- 
umns, one under General Crook, on the Kanawha, num- 
bering about 10,000 men, and one on the Shenandoah, 
numbering about 7,000 men, the one on the Shenandoah to 
assemble between Cumberland and the Shenandoah, and 
the infantry and artillery advanced to Cedar Creek, with 
such cavalry as could be made available at the moment, to 
threaten the enemy in the Shenandoah Valley, and advance 
as far as possible ; while General Crook would take pos- 
session of Lewisburg with part of his force and move down 
the Tennessee railroad, doine as much damage as he could, 
destroymg the New River bridge and the salt-works at 
Saltville, Virginia. 

" Owing to the weather and bad condition o( the roads, 
operadons were delayed until the ist of May, when, every- 
thing being in readiness and the roads favorable, orders 
were given for a general movement of all the armies not 
later than the 4th of May. 



286 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

" My first object being to break the military power of the 
rebelHon, and capture the enemy's important strongholds, 
made me desirous that General Butler should succeed in 
his movement against Richmond, as that would tend more 
than anything else, unless it were the capture of Lee's 
army, to accomplish this desired result in the East. If he 
failed, it was my determination, by hard fighting, either to 
compel Lee to retreat, or to so cripple him that he could 
not detach a large force to go North, and still retain enough 
for the defence of Richmond. It was well understood, by 
both Generals Butler and Meade, before starting on the 
campaign, that it w^as my intention to put both their armies 
south of the James river, in case of failure to destroy Lee 
without it. 

" Before Qrivinor General Butler his instructions, I visited 
him at Fort Monroe, and, in conversation, pointed out the 
apparent importance of getting possession of Petersburg, 
and destroying railroad communication as far south as 
possible. Believing, however, in the practicability of cap- 
turing Richmond, unless it was reinforced, I made that 
the objective point of his operations. As the Army of the 
Potomac was to move simultaneously with him, Lee could 
not detach from his army with safety, and the enemy did 
not have troops elsewhere to bring to tiie defence of the 
city in time to meet a rapid movement from the north of 
James river. 

" I may here state that, commanding all the armies as I 
did, I tried, as far as possible, to leave General Meade in 
independent command of the Army of the Potomac. My 
instructions for that army were all through him, and were 
general in their nature, leaving all the details and the exe- 
cution to him." 

The particular plan of operations for the Army of the 
Potomac has been severely criticised by various writers 
upon the war. From the first Grant w^as "firm in the con- 
viction that no peace could be had that would be stable and 
conducive to the happiness of the people, both North and 
South, until the military power of the rebellion was entirely 
broken." How he expected to break this military power is 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 



287 



Stated with clearness, and is based upon the soundest mili- 
tary principles : 

" 1 therefore determined, first to use the greatest number 
of troops practicable against the armed force of the enemy, 
preventing him from using the same force at different sea- 




FORTIFICATIONS IN AND AROUND WASHINGTON CITY. 



sons against first one and then another of our armies;" 
and, *' second, to hammer continuously against the armed 
force of the enemy and his resources, until by mere attri- 
tion, if in no other way, there should be nothing left to Inm 
but an equal submission with the loyal section of our 



2SS LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

common country, to the Constitution and the laws of the 
land." 

It will be observed that he says nothing here in reference 
to strategic points, converging or diverging lines of opera- 
tions, but has steadily kept in view only the armed forces 
of the enemy. But as if to leave no room for doubt on 
this point, he instructed Meade that Lee's army, the very 
head and front of the Confederate cause, " would be his 
objective point ; that wherever Lee went, he would go also." 
In the entire range of all that has ever been said, either by 
the writers or the fighters, there cannot be found a more 
comprehensive plan of a great war, nor a more judicious 
statement of the principles upon which it should be con- 
ducted. If it be true, as has been stated, that the General 
who conceived and carried this plan into execution, although 
educated as a soldier, never read a treatise on grand tactics 
or strategy, and, like Bagration, knew nothing of those 
sciences, except what he learned from his own experience 
and reflection, his countrymen may justly ascribe to him the 
possession of military genius of the highest order. 

The position of Lee's army was as well known as that 
of the Army of the Potomac, when Grant moved his head- 
quarters to Culpeper Court-House; but even if there had 
been a reasonable doubt on this point, past experience had 
shown that the national forces would not be permitted to 
get far in the right direction without obtaining the desired 
information. This fact alone ought to have settled, as it 
did, all questions in reference to the line of operations to 
be pursued In the coming campaign ; and yet It Is claimed 
that Grant should have withdrawn from Lee's front, marched 
to Washington or Acqula creek, transported his army to 
the James, and there begun his campaign, by moving directly 
upon Richmond or its communications. It is asserted, In 
support of this plan, that Grant himself, before being called 
to the command of all the armies, wrote a letter to Halleck 
recommending a plan similar to that devised by Generals 
Franklin and Smith. The country has good reason to be 
thankful that Grant, when he became charged with the 
actual responsibility of making and executing a plan for the 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 289 

Army of the Potomac, saw sufficient reason, after careful 
investigation and study, to change his views, and adopt a 
plan more strictly in accordance with the principles of war. 
The Army of the Potomac had already tried the Peninsula 
route to its sore cost. The long array of unfortunate 
events, beginning with the seven days' battle, including the 
closing events of Pope's disastrous campaign ; the indeci- 
sive battle of Antietam ; the bloody disaster of Fredericks- 
burg; the inglorious failure of Chancellorsvllle, scarcely 
counterbalanced by the expulsion of Lee from Pennsylvania 
by the uncompleted victory of Gettysburg, the Mine Run 
campaign, followed by the rapid retreat on Washington, 
had their beginning in the attempt to take Richmond by 
advancing upon it by the way of the Peninsula. 

It was by holding his army well in hand that Lee was 
enabled to plant himself with such address across Grant's 
line of march, in time to prepare those, intrenched posi- 
tions which covered him almost as effectively as the regular 
intrenchments of Richmond could have done. It was this 
and not the physical features of the theatre of operations 
which gave the overland campaign its destructive pecu- 
liarldes, — makinor it "a kind of runnlno- sle^e " instead of 
a campaign subject to the ordinary rules of warfare. 

Grant has been also severely criticised for permitting 
Butler to advance from Fortress Monroe, and SIgel from 
West Virginia, instead of uniting them with Meade before- 
the campaign began ; but it must not be forgotten that 
Butler was united with Meade before the army reached 
Richmond, and that Slo^el's advance from West Virelnia 
was made with troops *• which, under no circumstances, 
could be withdrawn to distant fields, without exposing the 
North to invasion." It was hoped, too, that the latter 
command, if it did not succeed in breaking up important 
railroad communications, would at least neutralize the 
large force which must necessarily be detached by Lee for 
their protection. Its success in the latter respect was suf- 
ficiently realized in the earlier stages of the campaign, as 
well as subsequently when, under Crook, it formed a part 
of Sheridan's army in the Shenandoah Valley. 

19 



290 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

The defensive line occupied by Lee at Orange Court- 
House was well selected and thoroughly strengdiened. 
Covered by the Rapidan, a stream of considerable size with 
steep banks and difficult fords, flanked on the east by the 
Wilderness, and on the west by the foot-hills of the Blue 
Rido-e, a direct attack was entirely out of the question, and 
to turn it was exceedingly difficult. But Grant was not 
the man to remain long in doubt as to what policy to pur- 
sue. A turning movement towards his right, avoiding the 
Wilderness, throwing him into the open country, and more 
direcdy upon the Confederate lines of communicadon, 
seemed to promise better results in case of immediate suc- 
cess ; but on the other hand it would carry him away from 
his own communicadons and leave him in greater danger 
in case of a drawn batde, or a counter attack from the 
enemy. He hoped to be able to crush Lee at a single 
blow or at most in a few days, but he was too sagacious to 
count certainly upon this. He therefore determined to 
move by the left flank, crossing the Rapidan by the lower 
fords and pushing through the Wilderness towards the open 
country in the direcdon of Spottsylvania. Accordingly on 
the 3d of May all arrangements having been perfected, the 
troops fully equipped, armed, and supplied with three days' 
cooked rations, the cavalry and artillery horses newly shod 
and the army concentrated in the neighborhood of Culpeper 
and Brandy Station, he issued his instructions to Meade fof 
the movement to begin. That officer arranged the details as 
follows : Wilson with the Third cavalry division, about 
3,000 strong, was ordered to move from his camp near 
Stevensburg at one o'clock, on the morning of Thursday, 
May 4th, and to cross the Rapidan at Germania Ford, cov- 
ering the construction of a pontoon bridge at that place 
and clearing the way for the infantry of Warren's corps, 
which was directed to follow close upon him. As soon as 
Warren's advanced division had crossed the river, Wilson 
was to move out by the old Wilderness Tavern and take 
the road to Parker's store, scouting the country in all di- 
recdons and keeping the infantry informed of the enemy's 
movements. Sedgwick was directed to follow Warren, 



^ FfAPAHANNOCK I / ^~'' 




MAP OF THE COUNTRY FROM CULPEPER COURT-HOUSE TO RICHMOND, VA. 

(291) 



292 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



keeping close up. Gregg, with the Second cavalry division, 
about 3,500 strong, was ordered to move at the same time 
to Ely's Ford, still lower down the river, covering the 
march and clearing the way for Hancock's corps towards 
Chancellorsville. Torbert with the First cavalry division, 
about 3,500 strong, w^as to cover the trains and the rear of 
the army; strongly pickedng the river from Rapidan Sta- 
tion to Germania Ford, and holding the line from Mitchell's 
Stadon to Culpeper; as soon as the crossing should be 
secured he was to rejoin Sheridan at Chancellorsville. 

Precisely at midnight the movement began. Wilson's 
advance guard crossed the river at 3.50 A. M., driving back 
the Confederate pickets, and by six o'clock the bridge was 
laid and his division formed in line a mile in advance of the 
ford. Warren began crossing soon afterwards, and by 
noon his advanced division, covered by the cavalry, had 
reached Wilderness Tavern, at the crossing of the Orange 
Turnpike and the Germania Ford roads, where he biv- 
ouacked for the night. Sedgwick kept well closed up, 
crossed the bridge during the afternoon, and encamped be- 
fore dark about a mile beyond the ford. Hancock's corps 
reached the river also at an early hour in the morning, 
found the cavalry across and the bridge ready, and there- 
fore lost but litde time in following, camping for the night 
on Hooker's old batde-ground. Neither column had en- 
countered the enemy, except the small force of pickets 
which had been watching the river. These were rapidly 
driven back by Wilson's advance, and were pursued by a 
small force as far as Mine Run. The country w^as thor- 
oughly scouted along all the roads leading towards the 
stream without encountering Lee's forces in any strength. 
The crossing was evidently a surprise, but the Confederate 
general was in no manner cast down by it. He knew that 
he could not hold the line of the Rapidan, a fordable river, 
so strongly as to keep it intact, and therefore wisely held 
his army concentrated in an advantageous posidon, ready 
to strike in whatever direcdon circumstances might require. 
His pickets gave him dmely nodce, and with ready deter- 
mination he moved to the attack. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 



293 



On the morning of the 5th of May Grant's army, between 
90,000 and 100,000 strong, lay in the Wilderness in the fol- 
lowing order : Wilson at Parker's store, Warren and Sedg- 
wick on the road from Germania Ford to Wilderness Tavern, 
Hancock at Chancellorsville, Sheridan with Greee and Tor- 
bert near by. The orders of the day did not contemplate 
a battle, although the troops were disposed in such a man- 
ner as to be prepared for attack. Wilson was directed to 
move at five o'clock a. m. to Craior's meetine-house on the 
Catharpen road, keeping out parties on the Orange Court- 
House pike and plank-road, and sending scouts well out on 
all the roads to the south and west. Warren was directed 
to move at the same hour to Parker's store, extending his 
rieht towards Sedewick, who was to move to old Wilderness 
Tavern as soon as the roads were clear. Hancock was to 
march towards Shady Grove Church, extending his right 
towards Warren's left at Parker's store. Sheridan, with 
Gregg and Torbert, was directed against the enemy's cavalry 
at Hamilton Crossing. Wilson moved promptly at the 
hour designated, leaving the Fifth New York cavalry. Col- 
onel John Hammond commanding, to hold Parker's store 
till relieved by Warren's advance ; but by dawn this gallant 
regiment was hotly attacked, of which due notice was given 
to the troops in the rear. 

Lee had taken his determination to fall upon Grant while 
still entangled in the Wilderness, and during the night put 
his entire army in motion by the two roads leading from his 
position to Fredericksburg, intersecting the roads from the 
Rapidan to Richmond at right angles. Ewell's corps was 
thrown forward on the old turnpike, and Hill's on the plank- 
road, while Longstreet's corps, which had occupied the ex- 
treme left of Lee's line, was rapidly withdrawn from Gor- 
donsville, and ordered to the front. The two armies had 
bivouacked within five or six miles of each other, and both 
were on the alert at an early hour. 

Griffin's division of Warren's corps had been thrown to 
the right of old Wilderness Tavern on the turnpike the 
evening before, relieving the cavalry and posting its own 
pickets well out. 



294 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Warren had hardly got his column In motion when his 
covering division was attacked with ereat vehemence, his 
pickets falling back rapidly. His orders to Crawford, com- 
manding his advance division, were to push forward to 
Parker's as rapidly as possible, but that officer, although 
informed by Colonel Mcintosh, who commanded a brigade 
of Wilson's division, and had just joined Hammond's hard- 
pressed regiment, that the enemy was advancing in force, 
moved with great deliberation, and did not reach Parker's 
at all. The intensity of the enemy's attack in the mean- 
time had increased to such a pitch that a general batde was 
now certain. Warren lost no time in deploying Wads- 
worth's division abreast of and to the left of Griffin's on 
the plank-road. Robinson's division was held in reserve, 
with one brigade in line on Wadsworth's left. Wright's di- 
vision of the Sixth corps was also ordered into position on 
the ricrht of this line. With this force a vigorous attack 
was made upon the advancing enemy, driving them back 
rapidly and in confusion : the heaviest of the fighting being 
done by Ayres' and Bartlett's brigades. But Ewell's lead- 
ing division was soon supported by the rest of his corps, 
and in turn drove back Warren's entire line. The woods 
were so tanorled and thick that the alio^nment could not be 
kept ; Crawford's division was separated from Wadsworth, 
and the latter from the main force formed on the turnpike; 
while Wright, for a similar reason, found it impossible to 
bring his division properly to Warren's support. Under 
such circumstances these sub-divisions of his command 
were unable to make head acrainst the force bearinor down 
upon them, akhough they struggled gallantly. 

Warren had, therefore, nothing to do but to withdraw his 
troops to a new line somewhat to the rear but still in front 
of Wilderness Run. 

Grant directed Meade to recall Hancock's column, which 
had moved at the appointed time southward by the way of 
Todd's Tavern. It was ordered to countermarch by the 
Brock road, and take position on Warren's left. In the 
meantime Hill's corps moving on the Orange plank-road 
had encountered Hammond's regiment, and, after a severe 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 295 

engagement, in which Colonels Hammond and Mcintosh 
behaved with great gallantry, had driven it from Parker's, 
but not till Getty's division of the Sixth corps had reached 
the cross-roads four miles to the eastward, and put itself in 
position to check Hill's advance. The intention of the 
latter was evidently to march down the Orange plank-road 
till he reached the Brock road, and then turning to the 
northward to throw himself upon what he supposed to be 
the flank of Grant's army. Fortunately his purpose was 
counteracted by the immovable stand made by Getty at the 
intersection of the roads. Hancock reached this position 
at three o'clock, and after beginning the construction of a 
line of breastworks along the Brock road, he was ordered 
to advance against Hill, and if possible drive him beyond 
the position at Parker's store. A few minutes past four 
o'clock the attack was made in fine style by Getty's division, 
which encountered the enemy in great strength only a few 
hundred yards to the front. Hancock went to his support 
with Birney's and Mott's divisions, and soon afterwards 
the greater part of Gibbon's and Barlow's divisions, with 
all the artillery, became engaged, pressing forward with 
great ardor; but our troops could not carry the enemy's 
position or break their lines, although they did not relin- 
quish the effort until after nightfall. 

In order to relieve the pressure on Hancock's front, and 
to strike Hill on the flank, Warren was directed to send a 
force from his left towards Parker's store. Wadsworth's 
division and Baxter's brigade were selected, and began the 
movement at about four o'clock, but they experienced such 
difficulty in penetrating the tangled forest that it was dark 
before Wadsworth could make himself felt by the enemy. 
Wilson's division, in the meantime, reached Craig's meet- 
ing-house at an early hour in the morning, and just beyond 
there encountered the Confederate cavalry under Stuart, 
driving it rapidly back more than a mile. His ammunition 
becoming exhausted, he was in turn repulsed, and shordy 
afterwards ascertained that the Confederate infantry had 
dislodged his regiment from Parker's store, and interposed 
between him the main army. Uniting his division as 



296 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

rapidly as possible, he struck across the country, and, after 
severe fighting, succeeded in forming a junction with 
Greek's division at Todd's Tavern. Sheridan, having 
learned early in the day that the enemy's cavalry at Hamil- 
ton Crossing had rejoined Lee, concentrated his corps on 
the left of the army, confronting the Confederate cavalry 
under Stuart, defeating all his attempts to reach our trains, 
and holding all the country from Hancock's left, by the 
way of Todd's Tavern, to PIney Branch Church. The 
Ninth corps, under Burnside. had been instructed to hold 
a position on the north side of the Rapldan for twenty-four 
hours after the army had crossed. It was now ordered to 
the front, and, after a long and fatiguing march, reached 
the field on the morning of the 6th, where it was assigned 
a position between Warren and Hancock. Longstreet was 
also hastening to reinforce Lee. 

The operations of the 5th, as has been seen, were of 
somewhat desultory character, the principal efforts of both 
armies being to secure a position for delivering battle fa- 
vorably. It has been said that Grant's moving columns were 
surprised and caught in flank, but this is not so ; for al- 
though he had hoped to get through the Wilderness before 
encountering Lee, he had disposed of his forces to the best 
possible advantage. In anticipation of a battle. 

The field upon w^hich the contending armies were con- 
centrated is one of the most remarkable ever known. It 
is a w^ild and desolate reelon of worn-out tobacco-fields, 
covered with scraggy oaks and pines, sassafras and hazel, 
and Intersected with narrow roads and deep ravines. It is 
a strange battle-ground; yet it is here, amid these jungles, 
on these narrow wood roads, and in these deep ravines, 
that is about to be fought one of the mightiest and most 
bloody, if not most decisive, battles of the war. Manifestly, 
Grant had not intended that the battle should take place in 
the forest. He felt proud because of the success which had 
attended the crossing of the Rapldan. It was confessedly 
a perilous operation ; and the fact that it had been accom- 
plished " in the face of an active, large, well-appointed, and 
ably-commanded army," was well fitted to relieve his mind 



k 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 297 

of the most " serious apprehensions." It was his hope, if 
not his conviction, that another day's march would enable 
him to push the army beyond the Wilderness, and, using 
it as a mask, to advance rapidly on Gordonsvllle, and take 
a position between Lee's army and the Confederate capital. 
It was Grant's expectation, in fact, that Lee, as soon as he 
was made aware of the movements of the national army, 
would fall back towards Richmond. With this end in view, 
Sheridan was instructed to move, with Greg^o^'s and Tor- 
bert's divisions, against the Confederate cavalry in the 
direction of Hamilton's Crossing ; W^Ilson, with the Third 
cavalry division, was to move to Craig's Meeting-House 
on the Catharpin Road, and thence to send out detach- 
ments along the different avenues by which the enemy 
might approach ; Hancock, with his Second corps, was to 
advance to Shady Grove Church, and thence to extend his 
right towards the Fifth corps, at Parker's Store ; Warren, 
with his Fifth corps, was to move to Parker's Store, and to 
extend his right towards the Old Wilderness Tavern, 
where Sedgwick was ordered to take position. 

On the morning of Thursday, the 5th of May, these 
orders were put in execution. As early as five o'clock 
the different columns were in motion, and pushing towards 
the positions respectively assigned them. 

The o-round on which the strueele was about to bes^in — 
a struggle greatly more severe than was anticipated by the 
national leaders — was a sort of clearance in the forest. As 
seen from Warren's head-quarters, near the Old Wilder- 
ness Tavern, there was a little brook flowing in a north- 
easterly direction. The brook is bridged at the turnpike, 
which soon afterwards rises to a ridge, on the southern 
slope of which is Major Lacy's house, in the midst of a 
lawn and green meadows. Beyond, the hills were covered 
with pines and cedars. On the right of the turnpike the 
thicket was very dense. A little more to the right was a 
ravine which divided the forces of Griffin and Ewell. At 
noon the preparations were completed ; and Warren, with 
the divisions of Griffin and Wadsworth, advanced to the 
attack. It was made with tremendous energy, and at first 



298 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

with complete success. The Confederate advance, which 
consisted of Johnson's division alone, was easily driven 
back ; and if the brigades of Ayres and Bardett had been 
more vigorously supported, Ewell's corps might have been 
involved in hopeless disaster. As it was the nationals, in 
what seemed the moment of victory, were speedily brought 
to a standsdll. Johnson had been driven back to the 
main body of Ewell's command. Rodes, with his fresh 
division, rushed to the rescue, when the shattered column 
quickly reformed. At this moment the batde raged with 
tremendous fury. It had been intended that Warren's 
right should be sustained by Wright's division, of the Sixth 
corps ; but owing to the denseness of the woods, and the 
total absence of roads, Wright was unable to get up in 
time. On Warren's exposed flank, therefore, the Confed- 
erates fell with fearful energy. The tide of batde was now 
turned. Griffin's brigades, overwhelmed by the force of 
the enemy, were driven back with the loss of two guns and 
several prisoners. Wadsworth's division, on the left, had 
been equally unfortunate. In striving to form a connec- 
tion with that of Griffin, it had moved in a wrong direction, 
completely exposing its left flank. On this the Confeder- 
ates opened a murderous fire, compelling the endre divi- 
sion to fall back in disorder. McCandless' brigade, of 
Crawford's division, which was stationed to the left of 
Wadsworth, fared even worse. Occupying an isolated 
posidon, and exposed at all points, it offered peculiar 
temptation for attack. The Confederates rushed upon it 
with great fury and in overwhelming numbers. For a 
moment it seemed as if the entire brigade was doomed to 
capture or destrucdon. After severe fighdng, McCandless 
succeeded in cutdng his way through, but not without the 
loss of two whole regiments. Warren, having thus lost 
all he had gained by the first successful onset, and having 
sacrificed at least 3,000 men, fell back and formed a new 
line of batde more to the rear, but still in front of the Old 
Wilderness Tavern, and across the turnpike. 

While Warren was thus engaged in the centre, Sedgwick, 
with the Sixth corps, having come up, was ready to take 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 299 

position on his right. Hancock, however, had not had 
time to return, as ordered, and take position on his left. 
Some four miles east of Parker's Store, as has already 
been indicated, the plank-road is intersected by the Brock 
road. Hill, it will be remembered, was pressing along the 
plank-road. Hancock, by the Brock road, was pushing 
forward to the point of intersection. It was all-Important 
that this strategic point should not fall into the hands of 
the enemy. As there was danger that Hill might reach 
that point before the arrival of Hancock, Meade ordered 
General Getty, with his division of the Sixth corps, to ad- 
vance and hold the position. It was not, however, a 
moment too soon, for Hill's divisions were already well 
forward ; and Getty, long before the arrival of Hancock, 
felt the presence and pressure of the foe. In spite of the 
rapidly increasing weight of his antagonist, Getty stoutly 
held his position. It was now near three o'clock in the 
afternoon. There was a lull in the fight. Suddenly there 
was heard a loud resoundinor cheer. It came from Han- 
cock's men, who, with almost incredible rapidity, were 
pushing through the defiles of the forest. 

On his arrival, Hancock took position along the Brock 
road facing westward. He immediately commenced to 
throw up breastworks. These, however, were not yet 
completed, when he was ordered to attack with his whole 
corps, Getty supporting the advance. Birney, with his own 
command and that of Mott, was thrown forward on Getty's 
right and left, on both sides of the plank-road. A section 
of Ricketts' battery, and a company of the First Pennsyl- 
vania artillery, followed close in the rear of the infantry. 
It soon became manifest that the enemy was present in 
great force, although such was the density of the forest 
that neither army could see the other. Getty, strengthened 
as he was by Birney and Mott, was making no head- 
way. Hancock, now pushing forward the brigades of Car- 
roll and Owen, of Gibbon's division, and the Irish brigade, 
of the Second Delaware, under Colonel Smythe, made, to 
use the language of General Lee, '' repeated and desperate 
assaults ;" but it was all in vain. Hill's corps, which 



300 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



consisted of the divisions of Anderson, Heth and Wilcox, 
all of them West Point men, not only successfully resisted 
but repelled every attack. The afternoon was wearing 
away. During the heat of the fight, and when the 
Confederates made one of their desperate and apparendy 
successful onslaughts, the section of Ricketts' battery, 
which was moved along the plank-road, w'as actually 
captured, the men and horses suffering terribly. It was 
soon, however, recaptured by Carroll's brigade, and after- 
wards withdrawn and replaced by a section of Dow's 
Sixth Maine battery. Hancock had done his best, but ap- 
parently in vain. Mott's command had already given way ; 
and Hays, while attempting to fill up the break in the line, 
was shot dead, at the head of his brigade. 

The heavy and long-continued firing towards the junc- 
tion of the plank and Brock roads had already attracted 
the attendon of Grant and Meade. It was evident that 
the battle was fierce — that the Confederates were present 
in great force, and that Getty and Hancock^ were being 
taxed to the very utmost. By way of furnishing relief to 
these two commanders, Wadsworth, with his own division 
and Baxter's brigade, of Robinson's division, was ordered 
to move southward through the forest, and strike Hill on 
the flank and rear. Such was the density of the forest, 
and so great were the obstacles encountered in the face 
of skirmishers who were evidently familiar with every inch 
of the ground, that darkness had set in before Wadsworth 
was in a position to strike as directed. His troops rested 
on their arms for the night, ready to take advantage of 
their favored posidon in the morning. Towards midnight, 
all was silent in the Wilderness. Hancock had failed to 
drive Hill back on the plank-road. Hill had been equally 
unsuccessful in his attempt to dislodge Hancock. All 
along the line the nationals and Confederates lay so close 
to each other that the soldiers of both armies drew water 
from the same brook. As in the earlier part of the day, a 
ravine divided both the opposing armies in two. Han^ 
cock was separated from Warren and Sedgwick. Ewell 
was unable to form a connection with Hill. The batde- 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 3OI 

ground was thickly strewn with dead and dying men. Such 
was the end of the first day in the Wilderness. 

Night was spent by both commanders in preparing for 
the conflict of the coming day. Burnside, it will be re- 
membered, had been left at Culpeper Court-House with 
the Ninth corps, his instructions being to hold that place for 
at least twenty-four hours after the departure of the main 
body of the army. He had already been ordered forward ; 
and shortly after day-break, on the morning of the 6th, he 
was on the field, and taking position between the troops of 
Warren and Hancock. He had marched with great 
rapidity a distance of thirty miles, and crossed both the Rap- 
pahannock and the Rapidan. Grant's order was given as 
soon as he heard the reports of the different commanders. 
It was simple. " Attack along the whole line at five in the 
morning." Lee had decided to deliver an overwhelming 
blow on Grant's left ; but as It would be impossible to do 
so before the arrival of Longstreet, he resolved to distract 
attention, and so gain time by making a demonstration on 
the national right. Just fifteen minutes before the time ap- 
pointed by Grant for the general attack, a sudden discharge 
of musketry in the direction of Sedgwick announced the 
fact that Lee was as ready for batde as his antagonist. 
This attack, however, was not pushed with vigor. Sedg- 
wick was able to hold his own, and even to push his front 
forward a few hundred yards. The general plan of batde, 
as Grant had arranged it, was undisturbed. 

At ^VQ o'clock precisely, Warren and Hancock advanced 
to the attack. Hancock, however, was doomed to bear the 
principal burden of the fight. With him, therefore, we 
must remain and witness the tide of batde, as It ebbs and 
flows In his front. Dreading an attack In great force, he 
had taken the precaution to throw up earthworks on the 
Brock road. Holding these works with his left, he threw 
forward his right and centre, consisdng of two divisions, 
under BIrney, Getty's command, and the brigades of Owen 
and Carroll, of Gibbon's division. Half and half work 
formed no part of Hancock's calculations. He meant to 
strike a firm and decisive blow. While BIrney and Getty 



302 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

made the direct attack along the plank-road and on both 
sides of the same, Wadsworth, having- worked his way 
across that part of the Second corps which was advancino^ 
along- the right of the plank-road, was ready to strike Hill 
clean on the left flank. The direct and flank movements 
were made almost simultaneously ; and so furious was the 
onset that, after an hour's severe fighting, the ground along 
Hill's entire front was carried, and some parts of the line 
driven back through the woods fully half a mile. Hill's 
troops, in fact, could not be halted until they had overrun 
the trains, artillery, and even the head-quarters of the 
Confederate commander. The rifle-pits had been captured, 
with many prisoners, and five stands of colors. It seemed 
as if the batde were already won. Another vigorous onset, 
and the presumpdon is that Lee's army will be cut in tw^o. 
The divisions of Heath and Wilcox, of Hill's corps, have 
been literally shattered to pieces. 

At this supreme moment the victors paused in their tri- 
umphant progress. The pause was fatal. It w^as now 
about seven o'clock. Hancock set about rearranging his 
troops and getting them into battle order. He had been 
reinforced by Stevenson's division of Burnside's corps, and 
Wadsworth's division was now brought into proper line of 
batde. Getty's division, now completely exhausted, was 
replaced by Webb's brigade from Gibbon's command on 
the left, and Frank's brigade, of Barlow's division, was 
pushed forward from the same flank. In making these ar- 
rangements, however, two precious hours w^ere wasted. 
These hours of inaction proved a great gain to the Con- 
federates. Hill's remaining divisions found time to come 
up. Longstreet, too, was already close at hand. Hancock 
was as yet ignorant of the near presence of Longstreet. 
He had looked for him in another direction. It was known 
the night previous that he was marching up from Orange 
Court-House, and the unavoidable conviction was that his 
object was to strike Hancock in the left flank and rear. It 
was because of this conviction that Hancock had only ad- 
vanced his right divisions, leaving his left, under Gibbon, 
in charo-e of the works on the Brock road. Hancock had 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 303 

correctly judged. Longstreet had really been making such 
a movement. So sudden, however, and so ove r whelm i no- 
had been the attack on his front that Lee, fearing for the 
safety of his whole army, ordered Longstreet to discontinue 
his flank movement and to come to the assistance of Hill. 
His arrangements completed, Hancock resumed the ad- 
vance with great energy. The line in his front no longer 
yielded to his touch. Again and again he attempted to 
press back the enemy, but it was all in vain. The battle 
now raged again with great fury, deeds of daring being 
performed on both sides. Lee had exhibited great per- 
sonal bravery. When Gregg's Texans came up he put 
himself at their head, and was with difficulty dissuaded 
from leadinof them to the attack. For two hours the tide 
of battle ebbed and flowed. It soon beo^an to be evident 
that Longstreet was present in force, and that he was di- 
recting the movements of the Confederates in Hancock's 
immediate front. Finding it impossible to make any head- 
way, nay, feeling more and more the irresistible pressure 
of the foe, Hancock ultimately falls back and reforms on 
the oricrinal line alone the Brock road. It is now about 
eleven o'clock. The situation is becomino- more critical 
every moment. Wadsworth, after exhibiting great gallan- 
try, has just fallen, pierced through the head with a bullet, 
and his command is in utter rout. At this supreme moment, 
when the Confederates seem about to reap the rewards of 
victory, there is a sudden pause in the battle. Why, no 
one could tell. It afterwards appeared that, when about to 
deal a decisive blow both on Hancock's front and left flank, 
Longstreet was shot, by mistake, by his own men. He had 
been riding with his staff at the head of his column, when 
the cavalcade suddenly confronted a portion of the flanking 
force, and was mistaken for a party of national horsemen. 
It was an unfortunate occurrence for Longstreet, and, in- 
deed, for the whole Confederate army ; but it was the sal- 
vation of Hancock, and, probably, of the entire Army of 
the Potomac. 

Although the fighting had, so far, been mostly done by 
the national left, the centre and right had not been idle. 



304 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



Sedgwick, who was attacked In the early morning, but who 
had^successfully maintained his position, had labored in vain 
to carry certain intrenchments, behind which Ewell had 
sheltered his men. His attempts had been frequently re- 
peated ; his losses in consequence were great. Two of 
Warren's divisions had been detached and sent to the as- 
sistance of Hancock. The other two divisions held a 
simply defensive atdtude. It was part of the plan of the 
day that Burnside, advancing through the opening between 
Warren and Hancock, should co-operate in the general ad- 
vance. It was not, how^ever, until the afternoon that he 
became engaged with the enemy, and the results were un- 
important. 

After the repulse of Hancock by Longstreet, there was 
an almost unbroken lull along the whole line of battle until 
about four o'clock. When Longstreet was wounded Lee 
took formal charge of that part of the field. Hancock had 
turned to good account the time which had been allowed 
him. Reinforcements had been sent him by Meade; his 
position had been gready strengthened ; and his front hav- 
ing been cleared by a well-executed movement made by 
Colonel Leasure, he was fully prepared to meet the enemy. 
He had already received orders from Grant to resume the 
attack at six o'clock. Shortly after four o'clock Lee, who 
by this time had got the troops of Longstreet and Hill well 
in hand, hurled them against Hancock's lines. The Con- 
federate columns, four'in number, came rolling forward. 
Without halting or firing a shot they approached the edge 
of the abatis, less than a hundred paces from Hancock's 
front. Here they paused and opened a furious fire of mus- 
ketry, which was kept up with great vigor. It had litde effect, 
however, on Hancock's men, who were safe behind their 
breastworks, and who replied with becoming energy to the 
Confederate musketeers. While this was going on a fire, 
which had broken out in the woods in the afternoon, com- 
municated with the log-breastworks, which soon became a 
mass of flame. The smoke and flame, which were driven 
by the wind in the faces of the nationals, thus prevendng 
them from firing from the parapet, gave an advantage to 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 



305 



the Confederates. Not slow to seize the opportunity Lee's 
men rushed forward, broke through the first hne, pressed 




GENERAL GEORGE G. MEADE. 



into the breastworks, and crowded them with their stand- 
ards. At this critical moment, when some of the nationals 
were already in full retreat towards Chancellorsville, Car- 



20 



306 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

roll, of Gibbon's division, In obedience to orders from Gen- 
eral Birney, rushed forward by the left flank, and, falling 
with tremendous fury on the Confederates, routed them 
with great slaughter, reclaimed the works, and saved the 
day. 

Later in the day, and just before dark, a vigorous attack 
was made by Ewell on the right and front of Sedgwick's 
corps, on the extreme national right. It was a complete 
surprise to the nationals ; and, although Sedgwick quickly 
got his corps Into order and repelled the attack, it was not 
until Generals Seymour and Shaler, of RIckett's division, 
had been captured, with about 4,000 of their officers and 
men. It was now dark. The sound of battle ceased. 
The wearied soldiers, lying In many cases besides dead or 
wounded comrades, fell asleep on their arms. The piteous 
moanings of the wounded alone disturbed the surrounding 
solitude. The battle of the Wilderness, properly so-called, 
was ended. 

The two days' fighting had resulted In serious loss to 
both armies. The loss on the national side reached the 
high figure of 20,000 men, of whom probably 5,000 were 
made prisoners. On the part of the Confederates the loss 
was proportionately great, the lowest estimate being 10,000, 
of whom but few were captured. Among the killed on the 
national side were Generals Wadsworth, Hays, and Webb, 
and Hancock, Getty, Gregg, Owen, Bartlett, and Carroll 
were wounded, some of them severely. Of the Confed- 
erate officers, Generals Jones, Jenkins, and Stafford were 
killed, and Generals Longstreet, Pegram, Pickett, and 
Hunter were wounded. Such a bush-fight had never been 
fought before. 

On the morning of the 7th of May the rival armies still 
confronted each other in 'the Wilderness. Both were ex- 
hausted, and on neither the one side nor the other was 
there any disposition to renew the contest. In the national 
ranks there were not a few who were of the opinion that a 
backward march across the Rapidan would soon be ordered. 
Such thoughts, however, found no place in the mind of 
General Grant. His eye was fixed on Richmond. During 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 307 

the course of the day it became more and more apparent 
that Lee was falHno- back in the direction of Richmond. It 
was Grant's behef that Lee, convinced of his inabiHty to 
maintain the contest in the open field, had decided to retire 
and await an attack behind his own works. His own mind 
was quickly made up, and he resolved, by a flank move- 
ment on the Confederate right, to interpose his whole force 
between Lee and Richmond. Orders were given accord- 
ingly, and shortly after nightfall the entire national army 
was on its way to Spottsylvania Court-House, some thirteen 
miles farther to the southeast. Warren led the way, fol- 
lowed by Hancock, both on the Brock road. Sedgwick 
and Burnside moved on an exterior route, by way of 
Chancellorsville, where, during the course of the afternoon, 
the army trains had been parked. By this movement 
Grant abandoned the Germania Ford, and gave Lee an 
opportunity to cut off his communications. This, however, 
was of the less consequence, that the latter general was 
now under the necessity of taking care of his own com- 
munications, his right flank being already seriously threat- 
ened. Germania Ford, in fact, was now of litde use to 
Grant, and Lee might take possession or not as he thought 
fit. Lee was not slow to discover the real object of his an- 
tagonist, and to take measures accordingly. Anderson, 
who now commanded Longstreet's corps, received orders 
to move from the breastworks and take a position from 
which he would be able to advance on Spottsylvania Court- 
House in the early morning. Not finding a suitable place 
for bivouacking, in consequence of the fire in the woods, 
Anderson kept moving all night in the direction of the 
Court-House. It thus happened that Warren and Ander- 
son, the former by the Brock road, the latter by a parallel 
road a litde farther to the west, were simultaneously march- 
ing to the same point. 

It was about nine o'clock In the morning when Warren 
began to move his column. His desire was to reach 
Spottsylvania Court-House before the enemy could have 
time to be there in anything like force. Unfortunately, 
however, his course was greatly obstructed, and his pro- 



308 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

gress hindered. At Todd's Tavern he was delayed for 
two hours, the road being blocked by Meade's cavalry 
escort. About two miles farther on, and near one of the 
tributaries of the Po, he was again brought to a standstill 
by the cavalry division of General Merritt, who, the day 
before, and up to a late hour of the night, had been 
engaged fighting Stuart. At this point he lost three hours. 
It was already daylight ; and when he resumed the ad- 
vance, the road was obstructed with barricades of heavy 
trees. Considerable time was consumed in removing 
these ; and it was not until eight o'clock on Sunday morn- 
ing that the head of Warren's column, composed of two 
brigades, under Robinson, emerged from the woods, and 
took position on the open ground at what was called 
Alsop's Farm. This open ground or clearing covered a 
space of about 150 acres, and was distant from Spottsylva- 
nia Court-House some two miles. At this point the road 
from Todd's Tavern forks — one branch leading to the 
Court-House, and the other to Laurel Hill. The open 
space was traversed by an inconsiderable stream called the 
Ny ; and the ground beyond, which ascended towards 
Spottsylvania, was again covered with woods. Warren's 
advance was half way across the clearing, and on the point 
of commencing the ascent of the crest, when, all of a sud- 
den, the ridee blazed with cannon, and a murderous mus- 
ketry fire burst forth from the woods. The national line 
staggered and fell back. A stampede seemed to be immi- 
nent. Robinson exerted himself to the utmost to hold his 
men to their work. Getting his batteries into position on 
the right, he returned the enemy's fire promptly and with 
vigor. He was soon severely wounded in the knee; his 
men, thus left without their leader, and retaining a recol- 
lection of their bitter experience in the Wilderness, fell back 
to the woods, where, through the personal exertions of 
General Warren himself, they were rallied and reformed. 
Soon afterwards came up Griffin's division, which met with 
a similar reception, with a like result. Meanwhile, Craw- 
ford's division and that of Wadsworth, now commanded 
by Cuder, had reached the batde-ground. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 3O9 

Crawford advanced on Griffin's left; Cutler advanced on 
his right ; and, in a brief space, the woods on both Hanks 
were cleared of the enemy. Warren's entire corps was 
now drawn up in batde-line ; and the troops, as if con- 
vinced that another fierce and bloody batde was about to 
be fought, proceeded of their own accord to throw up in- 
trenchments. Such was the commencement of the great 
struggle at Spottsylvania Court-House. The fighting had 
been severe. The losses were heavy. On the national 
side about 1,300 men were put hors du combat. Some of 
the regiments were almost cut to pieces. The First Michi- 
gan, which went into the fight 200 strong, came out with 
only 23 men uninjured. The heat was most intense ; and 
large numbers of the men suffered from sunstroke. The 
engagement of Sunday morning, the 8th of May, is known 
as the battle of Alsop's Farm. 

It was the head of Longstreet's corps, commanded, as we 
have already seen, by Anderson, with which Warren had 
come in collision. If Anderson had not been at Spottsyl- 
vania Court-House ahead of Warren, there can be no 
doubt but that the story of that morning's fight would have 
been altogether different. Every obstruction put in War- 
ren's way was a benefit to Lee. Every moment XVarren 
was delayed was a double gain to the Confederates. But 
for the fire in the woods, which hastened Anderson's on- 
ward march, and but for the unfortunate obstructions which 
hindered Warren's progress, the national advance, it is rea- 
sonable to presume, would first have reached the clearing 
at Alsop's Farm. In such a case, the first great purpose of 
General Grant would have been accomplished — General 
Lee's right would have been turned. As it was, Lee had 
succeeded In planting his army right across Grant's line of 
march, and in establishing a powerful bulwark of defence 
on the Spottsylvania Ridge. This movement upon Spott- 
sylvania brought prominently into view, and shed fresh lus- 
tre on, the great abilities of the two rival commanders. 
The hand of Lee and the hand of Grant were distinctly 
visible. Skill in combination, promptitude of action and 
rapidity of movement entided the one to the victory ; and 



.■^ 



312 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

to the north of the Court-House. His left rested on Glady 
Run, bending to the north, and was shekered by strong 
works; his right, curving also to the north, rested on the 
Ny ; his centre, slightly thrown forward, was posted on 
commanding ground. The entire position was well sup- 
ported by breastworks. Not much fighting had been done 
on the Monday. Towards the evening, Hancock made a 
movement across the Po, his object being to capture a 
wao-on train which was seen movin*^ alonor the road leadinof 
to Spottsylvania. The river was crossed without difficulty ; 
but night came on before the operation could be completed. 
When morning dawned, the original object of the move- 
ment no longer existed ; for the Confederate train was al- 
ready safe behind the lines at the Court-House. Hancock, 
however, was bent on giving effect to his purpose, to the 
extent, at least, of securing a lodgement nearer the enemy's 
position. In developing his movement, he found it neces- 
sary again to cross the Po, which runs first almost due east, 
and then, as it nears the Court-House, makes a sharp bend 
to the south. Tw^o miles west of the Court-House, it is 
spanned by a wooden bridge. The approaches to the 
bridge, however, w^ere all so completely commanded by the 
enemy, that a passage at that point was deemed impractica- 
ble. Not to be hindered in his purpose, Hancock had just 
succeeded in throwing across the brigade of Brooke, a 
short distance above, when, by order of General Meade, the 
whole movement was suspended. It had been decided at 
head-quarters to make an attack on Laurel Hill, a strong 
position in front of Warren and Weight ; and Hancock 
was ordered to send two divisions to assist in the proposed 
assault. The divisions of Gibbon and Birney were at once 
retired, the enemy taking advantage of the backward move- 
ment, and falling heavily on Birney's rear. Barlow's di- 
vision, of Hancock's corps, was left alone on the south side 
of the Po. It was already almost too late; for Barlow's 
skirmishers were already yielding to the vigorous pressure 
of the enemy. Two brigades of the division were got off 
without serious difficulty; but the brigades of Brooke and 
Brow^n were fiercely attacked, and compelled to hold off the 




GRA^fS HE^DQlARIKkh NEAR LriAilA^OOGA. 




GRANT'S HEAD-QUARTERS IN THE WILDERNESS. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 313 

foe at every step of their backward progress. The diffi- 
culties of their position were aggravated by a fire, which 
broke out in the woods between them and the river. 
Those five brigades, however, were not to be dismayed. 
They succeeded at once in repelhng the assailants and in 
recrossing the stream. The remarkable coolness and self- 
possession of the men alone saved them from great disas- 
ter. As it was, they sustained the loss of many men in 
killed and wounded, and one gun — the first gun ever lost 
by the Second corps. Not a few of the wounded were left 
to perish in the flames. 

Meanwhile, the nationals had made two unsuccessful at- 
tempts on Laurel Hill. It had been attacked in the fore- 
noon by the brigades of Webb and Carroll. It was attacked 
more fiercely in the afternoon by the divisions of Crawford 
and Cutler. These attempts but revealed the enormous 
strength of the position. When Hancock arrived and joined 
Warren, arrangements were made for a united assault by 
the entire strength of the Fifth and Sixth corps. It was 
now^ five o'clock in the afternoon. In the face of a most 
withering fire, the nationals in thousands — now in steady 
line, now as if in broken groups, their standard-bearers 
always conspicuous — were seen struggling up the slopes, 
and, at one or two points, even penetrating the breastworks. 
It was found impossible, however, to effect a lodgement or 
to press on against the decimating fire. The nationals were 
compelled to fall back, and not without dreadful loss. An 
hour later, notwithstanding the fearful loss of life in the pre- 
vious encounter, the assault was repeated. It was made, if 
possible, with even greater bravery : it was repulsed with a 
still more dreadful slaughter. The Army of the Potomac 
had already witnessed much dreadful work. It had never 
before witnessed such work as this. Not once, since the 
commencement of the war, had such masses of men, in 
obedience to orders, marched to destruction. In these two 
assaults alone, the nationals lost nearly 6,000 men. Among 
the killed were Generals J. C. Rice and T. G. Stevenson. 

It was not, however, a day of disaster along the whole 
line. To the left of Warren, a vigorous assault was made 



314 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

on what seemed a weak point In the Confederate Hne by 
two brigades of the Sixth corps — twelve picked regiments, 
under Colonel Upton. The attack was a complete success. 
The first line of inj|:renchments was carried ; and several 
guns, with over 900 prisoners, were captured. Upton ex- 
pected assistance from Mott ; but the latter failed to come 
to the rescue. Unable, without support, to maintain the 
advantage he had won, Upton fell back to the national lines, 
carrying w^ith him his prisoners, but leaving the captured 
guns behind. 

Such was the terrible loth of May at Spottsylvania Court- 
House. The losses on both sides, for the whole day, were 
heavy. The national loss was estimated at 10,000. The 
Confederate loss. Including killed, wounded and missing, 
was probably not under 9,000. On neither side, however, 
was there any disposition to yield. On the contrary, both 
commanders were resolved to renew the conflict on the 
morrow ; and preparations were made accordingly. 

On the morning of the nth day of May, General Grant 
sent a characteristic despatch to the secretary of war. 
** We have now," he wrote, " ended the sixth day of very 
hard fighting. The result to this time Is much in our favor. 
Our losses have been heavy, as well as those of the enemy. 
I think the loss of the enemy must be greater. We have 
taken over 5,000 prisoners In batde, while he has taken 
from us but few, except stragglers. I propose to fight it oict 
071 this line, if it takes all summer^ As to the wisdom of 
the determination expressed in this final sentence, different 
opinions have been entertained and expressed. 

The I I th was Wednesday. The morning rose bright and 
clear. The two opposing armies lay In close proximity to 
each other. As the day advanced there was some skirmish- 
ing ; but on neither side was any attempt made to provoke 
a general engagement. Both commanders, It was evident, 
were preparing for battle; nor could doubt remain in any 
mind that, whatever might be the result, another and even 
more fearful encounter at Spottsylvania was imminent. 
Grant was still bent on carrying out his policy of continuous 
hammering. It was resolved, therefore, to strike a bold and 




(315) 



31 6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

effective blow on the enemy's right centre. At that point, 
and near the Landrum House, Lee's Hnes formed a saUent. 
It was Grant's conviction that the point was vuhierable. 
Hancock, who was chosen to strike the blow, was ordered 
to leave his intrenchments in front of A. P. Hill, and, by 
moving to the left, to take position between the Sixth and 
Ninth corps. Wright was to extend his left, and to con- 
centrate on that wing. Warren was to make a diversionary 
movement on the Confederate left, in his own front, the 
object being to give the enemy sufficient employment in 
that direction, and so prevent the withdrawal of his troops 
for the relief of the menaced point. Burnside, for a similar 
reason, was to make a vigorous assault on the extreme left. 
Rain fell heavily in the afternoon. When night came the 
rain-storm had not abated ; and, as the moon was in its first 
quarter, the night was dark and dismal. Soon after mid- 
night, under cover of the darkness and the storm, Hancock 
moved out from his intrenchments, and, guided by the com- 
pass, passed in rear of Warren and VWight, and took posi- 
tion within 1,200 yards of the enemy's front, at the point to 
be attacked. Barlow's division, in two lines of masses, was 
placed on the left ; Birney's division, in two deployed lines, 
was placed on the right ; Mott's division, Hancock's Fourth, 
supported Birney ; and Gibbon's division was held in re- 
serve. Of the actual strength of the position about to be 
attacked, the nationals knew nothing. Hancock was ready, 
waiting for the first streak of early dawn, to launch forth 
his brave battalions to victory or to death. 

It is now half-past four o'clock on the morning of Thurs- 
day, May the 12th. A heavy fog is resting on the entire 
surrounding country; and the feeble light of the rising sun 
struggles hard to penetrate the gloom. Hancock's divi- 
sions are already in motion. Steadily and silently they 
move towards the salient — Barlow over open ground, which 
extends up to the Confederate lines, Birney through the 
thickly wooded ground more to the right. Not a shot has 
yet been fired — not a word uttered. More^than half of the 
intervening distance has already been crossed. Suddenly, 
there is a loud-resounding ch^er, which rings along the 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 317 

whole line. Spontaneously, the men take the double-quick. 
They have reached the abatis, torn it up, and tossed it aside. 
With wild cries, they rush bounding over the intrenchments, 
Barlow and Birney's men entering almost simultaneously. 
Inside the intrenchments there is a terrible hand-to-hand 
struggle, the bayonet and the clubbed musket being freely 
used. Some 4,000 men, including General Johnson, of 
Ewell's corps, and General George H. Stewart, are sur- 
rounded and captured ; and with them thirty pieces of ar- 
tillery and as many colors. Meanwhile, the remainder of 
the Confederate force, stricken with terror and thrown into 
the wildest confusion, have fallen back, seeking safety in the 
rear. 

This attack of Hancock's was justly regarded as the 
most brilliant feat of arms yet accomplished in the cam- 
paign. The officers were taken at their breakfast. The 
captured generals were greatly mortified. When brought 
into his presence, Hancock received them courteously, ex- 
tending his hand. Johnson took it, but, with tears in his 
eyes, declared that he would rather have died than been 
made a prisoner. Stewart behaved with less gallantry. 
Hancojck had known him before. " How are you, Stew- 
art ? " said Hancock, as he offered him his hand. The reply 
was haughty and indignant. " I am General Stewart, of the 
Confederate army ; and, under present circumstances, I de- 
cline to take your hand." "And under any other circum- 
stance, general," said Hancock, with great coolness, "I 
should not have offered it." 

An hour only had elapsed since the column of attack 
was formed. Along with the prisoners which he sent to 
Grant, Hancock sent a note hastily written in pencil, say- 
ing : " I have finished up Johnson, and am now going into 
Early." This second task, as we shall soon see, he found 
to be less easy of accomplishment than the former. Early, 
like Johnson, commanded a division of Ewell's corps. At 
the point penetrated, Lee's army, as we have seen, formed 
a salient. Hanicock had, therefore, by his first success, 
thrust a wedee between the Confederate rioht and centre. 
It was his hope that he would be able to cut Lee's army in 



3l8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

two ; and there can be no doubt that If sufficient provision 
had been made promptly and In force, to follow up the ad- 
vantage Hancock had won by his first brilliant assault, the 
desired end would have been accomplished. As It was, 
Hancock's troops, flushed with success, and Incapable of 
being restrained after the capture of the intrenchments, 
pressed on through the forest In the direction of Spottsyl- 
vanla, driving the flying enemy before them. At the dis- 
tance of half a mile they were suddenly brought to a halt 
In their triumphant career. They had reached a fresh line 
of breastworks. Behind these works Evvell had taken 
shelter, and reinforcements had reached him from the corps 
of Anderson and Hill. Gathering themselves up for a 
supreme effort, the Confederates, in overwhelmlhg numbers 
and in magnificent array, rushed from the breastworks, and, 
falling with crushing weight on Hancock's men, now slightly 
disordered by their fearless rush through the woods, drove 
them back to the line which they had captured in the early 
morning. Here, however, Hancock managed to rally his 
troops ; and, getting them Into line on the right and left of 
the angle of the works, he stoutly resisted the fierce and 
repeated onsets of the enemy, and firmly held his position. 
His situation, however, was becoming every moment more 
critical. Lee was resolved. If possible, to recover the lost 
line of works ; and, with this end In view, he was putting 
forth the most herculean efforts, and bringing his entire 
strength to bear on the one point. It was now six o'clock 
— one hour and a half since the first onset. Hancock was 
still holding his position ; but relief was sorely needed. At 
this opportune moment, when most needed, relief came. 
Wright, who had been hurried forward with his Sixth corps, 
arrived on the ground, and took position on the right of 
the salient. Hancock, thus relieved, concentrated his 
troops on the left of the angle. A little later, about eight 
o'clock, and with a view to relieve the pressure on Han- 
cock and Wright, Burnslde and Warren were ordered to 
attack along their whole fronts. The battle now raged 
furiously at every point. No evidence was given that Lee 
had changed his purpose. The last line at the salient was 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 31 9 

Still the object of his ambition. On Hancock and Wright 
he dealt his heaviest and most terrific blows.. Again and 
again, and in rapid succession, he rolled against them his 
heavy masses. He seemed resolved to dislodge them. 
Seeing this, and becoming convinced that Burnside and 
Warren were producing no impression on their respective 
fronts, Grant detached two divisions from the Fifth corps 

diose of Cuder and Griffin — and sent them to the aid of 

the Second and Sixth corps at the angle wliich was still 
regarded as the prize of battle, and where was the focus 
of'\he fight. Five times did Lee hurl his heavy columns 
ao-ainst the nadonal lines entrusted with the defence of 
this position. Five times, after severe hand-to-hand fight- 
incr, in which the slaughter on both sides was dreadful, were 
the attacking columns repulsed. It was not until after 
midnight that Lee withdrew his shattered and bleeding 
lines and reformed them in his interior position. Hancock 
held the works he had captured in the morning. The 
batde had lasted twenty hours. The losses on either side 
were about 10,000 men. 

Such was the great batde of Spottsylvania Court-House. 
Although not a decisive victory, it was a posidve gain to 
the national cause. Its moral effect was great. It was one 
of the bloodiest batdes of the war. 

On the morning of the 13th of May the two armies con- 
fronted each other, Hancock holding his advanced posidon 
and the Confederates firmly intrenched behind an inner and 
shorter line. Lee's posidon, in truth, was as invulnerable 
as ever. The troops on both sides, as well they might be, 
were sorely exhausted. The rain which set in on the nth 
condnued to fall. The ground in consequence was soaked, 
and the roads were heavy. On this day there was some 
manceuvring, and a severe engagement, which lasted sev- 
eral hours, took place between the forces of Burnside and 
those of A. P. Hill. Nothing was gained on either side. 
It was now the ninth day since the Army of the Potomac 
crossed the Rapidan. In that brief space of time it had 
lost nearly 30,000 men, including a large number of officers. 
It was a fearful sacrifice of human life, sufficient to appall 



320 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

the Stoutest heart. There were, indeed, throughout the 
land not a few, who, looking only at the sacrifice, and heed- 
less of the results, pronounced the battles in the Wilder- 
ness and at Spottsylvania useless butcheries. Such was not 
the opinion of the generals in the field. It was not the 
opinion of Secretary of War Stanton, who nobly sustained 
Grant, and who, by his daily bulletins, cheered and buoyed 
up the hopes of the people. 

There were outside movements which were being carried 
on simultaneously with those events connected with the 
main army in the Wilderness and at Spottsylvania. These 
were Sheridan's raid and the co-operative movements of 
Burnside and Sigel. 

Sheridan, it will be remembered, in obedience to orders, 
set out on the morning of the 9th of May with portions of 
the three divisions of his corps, commanded respectively by 
Merrit, Wilson, and Gregg. His instructions were to en- 
gage the enemy's cavalry, to destroy the Fredericksburg 
and Virginia Central railroads, to threaten Richmond, and 
finally to communicate with and draw supplies from Butler's 
force on the James river. Cutting loose from tlie main 
army, he swept over the Po and the Ta, and crossing the 
North Anna he struck the Virginia Central and captured 
Beaver Dam Station. Sending out his men, he destroyed 
about ten miles of the track, also two locomotives, three 
trains of cars, and 1,500,000 rations. There, too, he recap- 
tured 400 nationals who had been made prisoners in the 
Wilderness, and who were on their way to Richmond. At 
Beaver Dam Station he was overtaken by a body of Con- 
federate cavalry under General J. E. B. Stuart, who had 
followed him from the Rapidan. Stuart fell upon him 
heavily, both on Hank and rear, but Sheridan, although he 
sustained some losses, was not hindered in his onward 
progress. He crossed the South Anna at Ground-squirrel 
bridge, and by daylight on the morning of the 1 1 th he had 
captured Ashland Station on the Fredericksburg road. 
After destroying six miles of the road, a train, and a large 
quantity of stores, he proceeded tov/ards Richmond. On 
the same day, at Yellowstone Tavern, a few miles north of 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 



321 



Richmond, he again came Into collision with Stuart. A 
severe contest ensued, Sheridan finally obtaining possession 




GENERAL SHERIDAN. 



of the turnpike, and driving the Confederate cavalry back 
towards Ashland and across the north fork of the Chicka- 
hominy. In this encounter General Stuart was mortally 



32 2 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

wounded ; and thus passed out of sight one of the most 
conspicuous figures of the war. Sheridan pushed on, his 
men oreatly emboldened by their success at Yellowstone 
Tavern ; and approaching Richmond, he made a bold dash 
on the outer line of works. This he easily carried — Custer's 
brio-ade capturing a section of artillery and lOO men. 
Findino- die second line too strong to be assailed with any 
prospect of success, Sheridan retraced his steps, and retired 
rapidly to the crossing of the Chickahominy at Meadow 
Bridge. There he found the bridge partially destroyed, 
widi the enemy in some force in his front and pressing also 
on his rear. Repulsing the enemy in his rear, he rebuilt 
the bridge under a most galling fire, and crossed a portion 
of his troops. The remainder made a detour by way of 
Cold Harbor, and crossed the Chickahominy at Bottom 
Bridge — ground rendered forever memorable by the Penin- 
sular campaign. Haxall's Landing was reached on the 
14th. Communication from that point was opened with 
General Buder, supplies were received, and the wearied 
troops were allowed three days to rest and refit. Sheridan 
then returned leisurely by way of Baltimore Store, White 
House and Hanover Court-House, and on the 25th of May 
he rejoined the Army of the Potomac. 

On the 19th of May. however, a Confederate corps came 
out of its works on the extreme right of Grant, and at- 
tacked him with great fury, but was repulsed with immense 
loss. This was the last attack in force ever made by Lee 
on Grant, though the war lasted ten months longer. The 
batdes of the Wilderness and of Spottsylvania so crippled 
the enemy's strength and affected the Confederate spirits, 
that their commander never again dared trust his troops 
outside of their works in any great assault. 

On tlie night of the 21st Grant began another move 
ment by the left flank, towards the North Anna river, with 
a view again of placing himself between Lee and Richmond. 
Of course, he exposed himself to the same risk of Lee 
getting between him and Washington, but he always took 
risks ; and Lee never ventured to avail himself of the 
chance. As fast as Grant threatened to cut off the Con- 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 323 

federate communications, the enemy fell back to protect 
them, and thus, when Grant reached the North Anna, Lee 
was there before him, having necessarily, from his position 
in all these movements, the shorter line. The North Anna, 
however, was crossed by a portion of Grant's army, despite 
severe opposition. 

Meanwhile, Buder had moved promptly, on the 4th of 
May, seized City Point, at the mouth of the Appomattox 
river, as well as Bermuda Hundred, on the opposite bank 
of that stream. His movements for some days afterwards, 
however, were not productive of any result of importance. 
On the 13th and 14th he moved up to the rear of Drury's 
Bluff, a fort on the south side of the James, and about 
seven miles below Richmond. But the enemy had mean- 
time collected all their scattered forces in North and South 
Carolina; and, on the i6th, they attacked Butler, and 
forced him back to his intrenchments between the forks 
of the James and Appomattox, where he was completely 
safe indeed, but entirely useless for offensive operations. 
Lee, in consequence, was able to reinforce his army in front 
of Grant with at least a division brought from before Rich- 
mond. Sigel's operations had also been unfortunate; he 
had advanced up the Valley of Virginia, as far as New 
Market, where he suffered a severe defeat, and retreated 
behind Cedar creek. In consequence of this result, 
Lee was able to bring several thousand reinforcements 
from the Valley of Virginia to oppose the Army of the 
Potomac. 

Grant, however, learning that Confederate troops had 
been moved from Buder's front to reinforce Lee, im- 
mediately ordered Buder to send all his available force to 
the Army of the Potomac, retaining only enough on the 
south side of the James to secure what had already been 
gained. 

Before these reinforcements reached Grant, he had made 
a third movement to the left, finding that the position of 
the enemy on the North Anna was stronger than either 
of those they had previously held. On the night of the 
26th the Union forces withdrew to the north bank of the 



324 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

North Anna, then marched south and east, and crossed the 
Pamunkey river at Hanovertown. The enemy, however, 
made a corresponding movement, and, when Grant arrived 
at Cold Harbor, and the Chickahominy, Lee was again in 
his front. 

The additions to the forces on each side had brought the 
armies of both Lee and Grant up to nearly the numbers 
with which they started from the Rapidan, when both ap- 
proached Cold Harbor, about ten miles from Richmond. 
Several indecisive conflicts occurred here, and, on die 3d 
of June, Grant ordered a general assault upon the enemy's 
w^orks, but met with the same result as at Spottsylvania ; 
the enemy, behind his bulwarks, was doubled in strength, 
according to all the estimates of the military art, and the 
national troops were unsuccessful in the attempt to pene- 
trate the works. This was the only encounter of the 
campaign in which Grant did not inflict upon the enemy a 
damage which compensated for his own. When he 
started from the Rapidan, Grant made up his mind that 
only the annihilation of Lee's army, and the exhaustion of 
all his forces, would allow the suppression of the rebellion. 
All these battles — of the Wilderness, of Spottsylvania and 
Cold Harbor — were fought and persisted in with the in- 
tention of gradually weakening and finally destroying Lee. 
They effected their purpose, at the price of precious lives, 
it is true, but at that price the Union was saved, and could 
alone be saved ; all other means had failed ; no skill had 
proved sufflcient, no courage had availed, until Grant came, 
and dealt those tremendous blows, which were the real 
death-blows from which the rebellion never recovered. 
They did what he set out to do. 

They not only depleted Lee so terribly that he never 
again assaulted Grant, but they drove the Confederate 
commander step by step from the Rapidan to the James, 
from which he never afterwards advanced except in the 
direction of Appomattox Court-House. Grant at Cold 
Harbor was master of the region between Richmond and 
Washington ; his communication with the latter city was 
open, while the enemy were shut up within the doomed 




(325) 



3 26 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

town, which so many of our leaders had striven to reach in 
vain. 

When Grant started from the Rapidan, it had been his in- 
tention to cross the James and attack Richmond on the south 
side, unless he should sooner overthrow Lee on the way. 
Richmond was supplied from the south by three railroads, 
that run, one, the Weldon road, direcdy into North Caro- 
lina, and so on through the Adandc States ; another, reach- 
ing west to Chattanooga, and connecdng with the endre 
southwestern region of the attempted Confederacy; the 
third, running southwest into the interior, as far as Danville. 
Grant saw, by a glance at the map, that when these rail- 
roads were in his power, Richmond must fall. Before the 
campaign began, he declared to those in his confidence, 
his intendon to seize these roads, as soon as Lee should be 
driven into Richmond. This was now accomplished. Lee 
was within ten miles of the city which he defended and 
Grant besieged. Lee's army and Richmond were now be- 
come one objective point, and Grant at once set about 
carrying out the secondary plan he had formed six weeks 
before. 

He marched his army across the James, making a fourth 
movement to the left, in the very sight of the enemy, who 
was too weak and had suffered too gready to come out and 
obstruct the operation. Grant's pickets were within hailing 
distance of Lee's ; his army front was not five hundred 
yards from the Confederate works at Cold Harbor ; but he 
withdrew his forces from this close propinquity, made a 
fourth flank movement in the very presence of his enemy, 
built bridges across the James two thousand two hundred 
feet in length, and crossed his whole army, with an immense 
wagon train, without the loss of a man, Lee not daring 
to come out of his works once, not offering the slightest 
opposition to an operation of such combined delicacy and 
magnitude. 

During this campaign Grant had fought the batdes of 
the Wilderness, Spottsylvania, North Anna and Cold Har- 
bor, besides a dozen smaller skirmishes, some of which 
ros(^ to the proportions of an ordinary battle ; and after 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 327 

each fight he had advanced and Lee had withdrawn. While 
covering and protecting Washington, the Union commander 
had steadily proceeded from the Rapidan to the James. 
He had lost, from the 5th of May to the 12th of June, six 
thousand killed, twenty-six thousand wounded, and nearly 
seven thousand missing; total, less than forty thousand 
men, of whom half eventually returned to duty. The 
losses of the enemy can never be definitely known, as 
so many of their records have been destroyed ; but Grant 
captured in this period over ten thousand of the enemy, 
while his own loss in missing, as has already been stated, 
was less than seven thousand; so that Grant took about 
four thousand more prisoners than Lee. 

Grant was still following Lee and aiming at Richmond. 
The James river was crossed on the 13th of June, 1864. 

Meanwhile, Hunter, who had superseded Sigel, was sent 
into the region to the northwest of Richmond, with the idea 
of living off the country there, so as to destroy its supplies, 
and, if possible, cut the enemy's communication with the 
west. By this expedition, and another simultaneously de- 
spatched under Sheridan towards Staunton, Virginia, Grant 
meant to act upon the principle with which he set out, of 
weakening the enemy in every quarter at once. While he 
himself should be making the main attack at the heart of 
the rebellion, his subordinates, in every part of the theatre 
of war, were to exhaust, and annoy, and tire out the enemy. 

The movements in Virginia were stricdy co-operative. 
They, too, were only a part; their aim and object are ob- 
scured, their greatness is not sufficiendy apparent, if it is 
forgotten that Grant was at the same time directing opera- 
tions all over the condnent; that he thought it worth while 
to incur great risk here, because he thus withheld the enemy 
from reinforcing their armies a thousand miles away. For 
Sherman was by this means able to slowly penetrate into 
Georgia. By the dme Grant had crossed the James, Sher- 
man had driven Johnston back in battle and on the march 
as far as Kenesaw mountain, a distance of fifty miles, and 
Hunter had reached and invested Lynchburg. At the en^d 
of what is called the Wilderness campaign, Grant, load 



328 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

reached the James river ; the other great armies of the 
Republic were also penetrating to the very Interior of the 
enemy's region ; the practical concentration that had been 
aimed' at was being effected ; the enemy were losing heart 
and men and resources, as well as ground, all ot which 
could never be regained ; and though the price that had 
been paid was great, not otherwise or cheaper could the 
result have been obtained. Through fire and blood and 
suffering only are nations saved. Grant had every reason 
to be sadsfied that his plans had proceeded thus far to their 
consummadon. The enemy felt certainly that the tolls 
were being drawn closer on every side ; that their new 
antagonist was a master ; that unity of action and clearness 
of design and energy of effort had succeeded to distraction, 
and Indecision and spasmodic struggles on the part of the 
Union. So far, the nation had great cause for gratitude to 
God and its armies, and to him who, under God, was the 
leader of those armies. 

Before Grant began to remove the Army of the Potomac 
to the southern side of the James, he despatched Sheridan, 
as has been seen, upon another of those raiding expedi- 
tions which form^ so Important a part of his plan. Sheri- 
dan, therefore, had been sent to destroy the Virginia Cen- 
tral railroad, at the same time that Hunter had been moved 
south from Winchester, on the route that SIgel had at- 
tempted at the outset of the campaign. The region where 
Hunter was to operate is known as the Valley of Virginia, 
and Is one of the most fertile spots in the Union. It had 
furnished supplies of vast Importance to the Confederates 
all through the war, and was the only really important 
source yet left open to Lee on the north side of Richmond. 
Grant planned for Sheridan and Hunter to advance towards 
each other, from opposite directions, doing all the destruc- 
tion possible to railroads, canals, and crops, and forming a 
junction In the heart of the fruitful region. After the work 
laid out for them was thoroughly done, they were to join 
the Army of the Potomac ; either making a circuit in the 
rear of Lee, or returning by Sheridan's route, as should 
seem most advisable at the time. 




THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY, THE SCENE OF SHERIDAN'S GREAT RAID. 

(329) 



330 L^FE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Hunter drove the enemy in his front, occupied tempo- 
rarily nearly all the Valley of Virginia, fought a battle in 
which he carried everything before him, while Sheridan 
moved up in the same direction, though from a different 
starting-point, doing great damage to railroads and crops. 
But Hunter thought it advisable to move westward instead 
of towards Sheridan, as had been planned and ordered ; 
so the junction was not formed, and Sheridan, meeting 
with greater opposition than his force alone was able to 
overcome, returned to Grant, while Hunter marched direct 
on Lynchburg, a place of the greatest importance in the 
rear of Richmond. Lee at once perceived the necessity of 
retaining Lynchburg, and despatched a large force, under 
Early, to oppose Hunter. Grant had not hoped that Hun- 
ter, without Sheridan, would be able to capture Lynchburg, 
which, being on the Chattanooga railroad, must of necessity 
be vigorously defended by Lee ; but Hunter had been so 
successful thus far, that he made the attempt. Lee, how- 
ever, having, as usual, a greatly shorter line, threw a force 
into Lynchburg before Hunter reached it; and Hunter, 
getting short of ammunition, was obliged to retire. He 
had now no choice of routes, but was obliged to return 
north by way of the Kanawha valley ; and this occupied 
him several weeks, durinor which the recrion that it was in- 
tended he should cover was necessarily left exposed. 

Unfortunately, all this happened at the very moment 
when Grant was making his movement across the James. 
Grant, not knowing of Hunter's change of plan, supposed 
of course that the latter was protecting the Shenandoah 
valley; and proceeded with his movement to the south 
side. W. F. Smith, who was in command of the troops 
from Butler's army, was moved out in the night to White 
House, on the York river, where he took transports, which 
conveyed him by the Chesapeake bay and James river, to 
City Point and Bermuda Hundred. Buder, thus reinforced 
with his own troops, was to seize Petersburg, a point in the 
interior lying direcdy on the road to Richmond. It was 
impossible to advance farther up the James river than Ber- 
muda Hundred, on account of the elaborate defences with 




MAP SHOWING THE POSITIONS OF THE ARMIES NEAR PETERSBURG, VA. 

(330 



232 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

which that stream was guarded. Grant, however, hoped 
to secure Petersburg by surprise, before the enemy could 
become aware of his intention or fortify the place. Smith 
moved with great secrecy and celerity, and meanwhile 
Grant had directed the laying of a pontoon-bridge over the 
James, by which the Army of the Potomac was to cross. 
The bridge w^as laid some twenty miles from Petersburg, 
which is on the Appomattox, about ten miles in a direct 
line from the James. The idea was for Smith, who went 
on transports, to advance rapidly and seize Petersburg, 
while the Army of the Potomac would cross by the bridge 
and march up at once to his support. Smith reached 
Petersburg early on the 15th of June, but did not assault 
until sundown ; he then attacked with a part of his force, 
and carried a portion of the Confederate lines with ease, 
capturing fifteen cannon and three hundred prisoners by 
seven o'dock P. M. Meanwhile, the advance of the Army 
of the Potomac had been hurried across the James, extra- 
ordinary exerdons had been made to supply it with rations, 
and it was pushed rapidly forward to the support of Smith. 
Hancock was in command of this advance. He reached 
Petersburg before dark, and, being the senior officer, w^as 
entided to command. As Smith, however, had already 
gained so great advantages, Hancock waived his rank and 
oftered his troops to Smith, to be used as that officer should 
desire. Smith, however, thought he had ^ accomplished 
enough, and although it was a bright moonlight night, and 
there%vere no indications that the Confederates were rein- 
forced, he did not push the assault. In the night the enemy 
discovered Grant's withdrawal from the north side and the 
attack on Petersburg, and before morning Lee was in force 
in front of Hancock and Smith. 

Grant, meanwhile, had been superintending and expedi- 
ting the crossing of the Army of the Potomac, and, early 
on the 1 6th, rode up to Smith's lines hoping to find him in 
possession of Petersburg ; for there had been ample time, 
opportunity, and force. But he found the enemy fortifying, 
Smith occupying an outer line, with Lee in strength behind 
the enemy's works, and it was not till evening that the 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 333 

Army of the Potomac was up in sufficient force to assault 
the now increased strength of the enemy. Attacks were 
made on the i6th, 17th, and i8th, and important positions 
gained ; but the enemy could not be dislodged from his 
interior line. 

Disappointed in his hopes of seizing the town, Grant now 
determined to envelope Petersburg, not attacking fortifica- 
tions again, but extending his line as far as possible towards 
two of the railroads, so important to Richmond, and which 
both passed through Petersburg. Lee, of course, perceived 
this change in Grant's tactics, and, as Hunter was at this 
time advancing against Lynchburg, the enemy were able to 
send off a corps with safety to repel Hunter. 

But Grant was not idle, although he had determined to 
cease assaulting Petersburg. His aim was to reach the 
South-Side road, and he despatched two small divisions of 
cavalry, under Wilson, to strike that road at a distance of 
fifteen miles from Petersburg. Wilson reached the road, 
and destroyed it for a distance of many miles, doing serious 
damage to the enemy's communications; but, in his return, 
he was intercepted by a force sent out by Lee to pursue 
him. He divided his command and endeavored to avoid 
the enemy, but was foiled in the attempt, and only suc- 
ceeded in rejoining the Army of the Potomac with the loss 
of all his guns and trains. 

Meanwhile Grant had effected a lodgement on the north 
side of the James, at a point called Deep Bottom, some 
miles nearer to Richmond than City Point ; and, on the 
26th of July, he moved a large force to that place, crossing 
the James by a pontoon-bridge above Bermuda Hundred. 
The object of this move was, if possible, to cut again the 
enemy's railroads on the north side ; or, if it should seem 
more desirable, to take advantage of the withdrawal of the 
enemy's troops from before Petersburg, which this demon- 
stration on the north side would necessitate, and explode 
a mine which had been dug under the enemy's line at 
Petersburg. 



CHAPTER IX. 

WAR OF THE REBELLION — Continued, 

Early's raid through ihe Shenandoah valley and Maryland — Threatening Baltimore and 
Washington — An engagement in front of the defences of Washington — The Sixth 
corps to the rescue — Sheridan's great raid up the Shenandoah valley — Fisher's 
Hill — The siege of Petersburg — Co-operation of Sherman — From Atlanta to Savan- 
nah — Thomas' campaign — Hood defeated — Sheridan's victory at Five Forks — Lee's 
surrender at Appomattox — Magnanimous treatment of the Confederates by Grant — 
Assassination of President Lincoln — Andrew Johnson President — Surrender of 
Johnston's army to Sherman — The collapse of the Confederate government — Grati- 
tude to Grant. 

Lee was a great general, and as soon as he discovered 
that Hunter was retreatnig westward from Lynchburg, and 
that, in consequence, the Shenandoah valley was left open 
and Washington uncovered, he determined to avail himself 
of this opportunity. Before Grant could learn the fate of 
Hunter, the Confederate chief despatched the corps which 
had been sent to the defence of Lynchburg into the Shen- 
andoah valley. The command was under Early, and moved 
rapidly down the valley, reaching the neighborhood of 
Harper's Ferry by the ist of July. Great alarm was imme- 
diately felt at the national capital. The government had 
reHed so exclusively on Grant, that, he being absent in front 
of Petersburg, all its action seemed paralyzed. He w^as 
urged to move his army at once from the James back to 
the Potomac, and abandon all the advantages he had 
gained through the two months of fighting and marching, 
in order to save the capital. He, however, had no idea of 
doino- this. He felt that he had his hand at the throat of 
the rebellion, and he meant never to let go his grasp. He 
saw how vastly more important it was for him to maintain 
his army at the vital military point; and he had the genius 
to perceive that point, as well as the courage to do as he 

(334) 




(335) 



^;^6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

thought right, in spite of entreaties and advice from soldiers 

and civiHans of place and reputation at the rear. 

But he still had no notion of losincr Washinorton. He 
-. ... ^ 

despatched first one division, and then two more of the 

Sixth corps to the defence of the region near the Potomac; 
he sent orders to the officials at Washington to gather ud 
all the forces in that neighborhood, at Baltimore, and in the 
garrison of the capital ; and at last sent the Nineteenth 
corps, which he had ordered from Banks when he became 
convinced that nothinof effective ao^ainst Mobile could be 
done with the command of that officer durino- this cam- 
paign. This corps arriving north at this crisis 'to join the 
forces on the James, was immediately ordered by Grant to 
Washington ; so that, before the Confederate force had 
reached that city, the Union strength was sufficient to de- 
fend it. Reinforcements came in rapidly from these various 
quarters, and Grant telegraphed for General Wright, who 
commanded the Sixth corps, to be placed at the head of 
all the troops for the defence of Washington, and directed 
that officer to move at once on the offensive against Early. 
Wright obeyed promptly, and Early was driven back into 
the valley. Hunter now arrived, after his circuitous return 
from West Virginia, and joined Wright at the entrance of 
the valley ; he was the ranking officer and took command. 
Thus Lee's plan of forcing Grant to abandon Richmond 
for the sake of saving Washington was defeated. It had 
been a skilful move on the military chessboard, and, with 
many other generals to deal with, would have succeeded ; 
but Grant never wavered for a moment. He had no more 
i^ea of abandoning the goal at which he was aiming, on 
account of any such distraction as Early's campaign, than 
he had of returninof to Washinorton after the battle of the 
Wilderness. He knew what was his real object, and he 
suffered nothing to divert his attention. Still, he was able 
to carry on a manifold campaign. Because he chose to 
direct his principal strength against a certain point, was no 
reason why he should not control all the subordinate move- 
ments, which were to tend to the same object, through dif 
ferent channels. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 337 

The Confederates had annoyed Grant by this valley 
movement, and they were determined to persist in it ; as, 
in consequence of the addition to their strength, which the 
fortifications of Petersburg afforded, they were able to 
afford the subtraction of enouofh men to create a serious 
distracting element in Grant's campaign near home. Lee 
annoyed his antagonist considerably for a while, until the 
Union commander became provoked, and finally turned and 
dealt a blow to the Confederates from which they never 
recovered. The weapon with which he dealt the blow was 
Sheridan. 

The confusion and mismanagement, and alarm around 
Washington during all these movements, had convinced 
Grant that there existed the same necessity for one supreme 
commander of all the forces in the neiehborhood of the 
capital. He determined that the four departments of West 
Virginia, Washington, Susquehanna, and the Middle De- 
partment must be consolidated, and that a capable soldier 
must be placed at the head of them, who could be allowed 
sufficient independence of action and discretion to secure 
success In his movements, but who at the same time must 
be really subordinate, and willing to make the movements 
of his command thoroughly co-operative with those more 
Important ones of the army in front of Lee. Grant, there- 
fore, visited Washington in person, informed the govern- 
ment of his views, to which they immediately deferred, and 
then went forward to the valley to view the situation for 
himself, and determined what he wanted done and by whom. 
He at once decided that the true course was to concentrate 
all the troops In that region, and push the enemy as far as 
possible. He, Indeed, never believed in remaining on the 
defensive. Sheridan, as commander of the cavalry of the 
Army of the Potomac, had already displayed the charac- 
teristics, the splendid vigor, the persistency, the determina- 
tion, the sagacity, and the moral courage which Grant re- 
quired for the position he was now creating. He sent for 
Sheridan, who joined him at Monocacy, Maryland, and then 
placed him in command. Sheridan was directed : " Con- 
centrate all your available force; and if it is found that the 

22 



338 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

enemy has moved north of the Potomac in large force, push 

North, follow him, attack him wherever he can be found. 

Follow him, if driven south of the Potomac, as lone as it is 

... ^ 

safe to do so." Two divisions of his old cavalry were sent 

from the Army of the Potomac to assist in carrying out 

these orders, and he was informed: "In pushing up the 

Shenandoah valley it is desirable that nothing should be 

left to invite the enemy to return. Take all provisions, 

forage, stock, wanted for the use of your command; such 

as cannot be consumed, destroy. The people should be 

informed that so long as an army can subsist among them, 

recurrences of these raids must be expected, and we are 

determined to stop them at all hazards. Bear in mind, the 

object is to drive the enemy south, and to do this j^ozi want 

to keep him always in sight. Be guided in your course by 

the course he takes." 

These orders show that he believed in always taking the 
offensive, in concentration of troops and efforts, in " push- 
ing," driving, following, attacking the enemy whenever he 
could be found, in keeping him always in sight, but that he 
was guided in his course by the course of the enemy. 

During August and the early days of September he re- 
mained near Winchester. By biding his time for weeks, 
until the opportunity came for a telling blow, he proved his 
discretion as he had already proved his valor. 

The general's old regiment, the Fourth regular infantry, 
which had been terribly cut up during the Wilderness cam- 
paign, was now detailed as his body-guard. It did not 
contain a single man who had belonged to it in the days 
when he was lieutenant and captain, but all were zealous 
in serving him, and plumed themselves not a litde that he 
began his career as a soldier in the " Old Fourth." 

In August as an ordnance boat at the City Point wharves 
was discharcrincr ammunition, one case fell to the orround 
and the whole cargo exploded, killing many men and de- 
stroying several steamers, and two millions of dollars' 
worth of property. 

The thundering reports shook the earth for miles, and 
planks, fragments of human bodies, and clouds of other 




(339) 



340 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



missiles dropped about head-quarters like rain. Terror- 
stricken officers and men ran wildly to and fro, wondering 
if the general destruction of the universe had come. Grant 
only stepped out of his tent, took his cigar from his mouth, 
glanced calmly around, and seeing that he could do no 
good, returned quietly to his camp-chair. 

General Grant was one of the plainest dressed men in 
the army, and had always the welfare and comfort of his 
men in mind. The following is an example of his kindness 
toward his soldiers : 

The first time General Grant left Culpeper Court-House, 
where his head-quarters then were, for Washington, the 
quartermaster made up a special train to accommodate the 
sick and such as might have leave of absence. One pas- 
senger car in the train was reserved for General Grant and 
the two or three officers with him, and they did not attract 
any especial attention as they passed into the car. The 
general was always the plainest and least ostentadous man 
in the army. All the cars of the train except the one re- 
served for General Grant were soon crowded, and many 
soldiers were standing on the platform of the station. 

General Grant was sitting alone on the side of the car 
next to the platform and near the door, when a soldier 
came to the door and was told by the guard that he could 
not come into that car. General Grant asked the guard 
what the man wanted, and was told that he wanted to go 
to Washington. The general then asked why he was not 
permitted to come into the car, and was answered that 
"This car is a special car for General Grant and his staff." 
The general replied quickly, "Let him come in. I only 
occupy one seat in this car." This was the first indmation 
the guard had that General Grant and his staff were in the 
car. The general then asked what the other men were 
doing who were standing out on the platform, and being 
told diat they wanted to go to Washington, he said : " Let 
all who can crowd in get in." The car was soon filled, one 
private soldier taking a seat beside the general and engag- 
ing him in conversation nearly all the way to Alexandria, 
not knowing with whom he was talking. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 341 

Having established Sheridan in command, and given him 
his orders, the lieutenant-general returned to City Point, to 
hurry up the cavalry which was to join the new commander. 
It was more than a month before Sheridan could get his 
army ready to move, and the country, not knowing the man 
as Grant did, got anxious. Pennsylvania and Maryland 
seemed constandy threatened with invasion, and Grant paid 
Sheridan another visit, not being willing to give him a posi- 
dve order to attack, until he should once more see for him- 
self the exact situadon. This Sheridan explained, an- 
nounced he could move the moment he was ordered, and 
expressed every confidence of success. Grant declares 
that he saw there were but two words of instrucdon to give 
his subordinate : " Go in ; " m being, in military parlance, a 
condensed form for "into batde." Grant asked Sheridan 
if he could be ready by Tuesday, and the latter replied, 
- Before daylight on Monday." He did prompdy what he 
promised, and Grant declared, " The result was such that I 
have never since deemed it necessary to visit General 
Sheridan before giving him orders." 

On the 19th of September Sheridan attacked Early and 
defeated him with heavy loss, capturing several thousand 
prisoners. The enemv rallied at Fisher's Hill, and was at- 
tacked acrain, and again defeated on the 20th ; Sheridan 
pursued him with great energy. On the 9th of October 
still another batde occurred at Strasburg, when the enemy 
was a third dme defeated, losing eleven pieces of ardllery. 
On the night of the i8th, however, they returned and at- 
tacked Sheridan's command, from which he was about 
twenty miles distant at the dme ; the nadonal forces were 
driven back with loss, but finally rallied; just at this 
moment Sheridan came upon the field, arranged his lines 
to receive a new attack of the enemy, and in his turn as- 
sumed the offensive, defeating the enemy with great slaugh- 
ter, and the loss of their ardllery, as well as all the trophies 
which had been captured in the morning. Pursuit was 
made to the head of the 'valley, and thus ended the last at- 
tempt of the enemy to invade the North. Their force in 
the valley was completely broken up, and never again 



342 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

assumed an oro-anized Independent form. Gram was tlius 
able to bring ^back the Sixth corps to the Army of the 
Potomac, to send one division from Sheridan to the Army 
of the James, and another to Sherman. 

On the 13th of August Grant moved a large force to the 
north side of the James, so as to threaten Richmond from 
that quarter, and compel Lee to bring back any troops he 
might be sending to the valley. It was discovered that 
onfy a single division had been sent to Early ; but this 
movement had the effect of drawing a large Confederate 
force from the defences of Petersburg, in order to resist 
the apprehended attack on Richmond. Grant at once sent 
the Fifth corps to seize the Weldon railroad, which the 
enemy held, and by which they drew many of their most 
important supplies. A fierce batde ensued, with heavy 
losses on each side, but Grant gained possession of the 
road, and the most furious efforts of the enemy were in- 
sufficient to dislodge him. He never afterwards lost his 
hold of that important avenue of communication between 
the Confederate capital and the region farther south.^ On 
the contrary, he constructed a railroad from City Point to 
the Weldon road, and was thus able to transport his own 
supplies to the extreme left of his now extended front. 

Miles upon miles of fordficadons now defended both 
Richmond and Petersburg, and the besiegers themselves 
had erected works as strong as those which they opposed. 
The extension of Grant beyond the. Weldon road forced 
Lee also to reach out by his own right, or Grant would 
have overlapped him. This extension of Lee, it seemed, 
must weaken his force on the north side of the James ;^ so 
Grant, on the 29th of September, made an advance against 
the fordficadons of Richmond. The strongest of all the 
defences of that city was carried by assault, but this was 
only one fort among many, and no other success was 
attained. The position was, however, so important and so 
far advanced, that Grant determined to maintain it. But- 
ler's entire army was now moved to the north of the James, 
to remain there. Desperate attempts were made by the 
enemy to dislodge him, but all failed. Simultaneously with 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 343 

the capture of this position, afterwards known as Fort 
Harrison, Meade made a movement on the extreme left of 
the Knes before Petersburg, with a view of attacking, if the 
enemy should be found materially weakened by a with- 
drawal of troops to Buder's front. Several fights occurred, 
but no result of significance, and Meade returned. 

On the 27th of October another movement was made 
to the left, with the view of ascertaining whether it would 
be possible to overlap the enemy's right, and thus to reach 
the South-Side road, whose possession would at once 
secure the fall of Petersburg. This reconnoissance devel- 
oped the fact, that the enemy's fortifications reached out 
certainly to within six miles of the South-Side road, if not 
farther, and, no opening for a successful assault presendng 
itself. Grant returned within his own lines. In making the 
return movement, Hancock was attacked, but immediately 
faced his corps about and drove the enemy, with slaughter, 
within their works. 

Meanwhile another portion of Grant's great scheme was 
proceeding under the skillful management of Sherman. 
That commander was able to prosecute his campaign with- 
out fear of interruption. He was certain that Grant would 
not intermit his operations, and that no support from Lee 
would be allowed to come to Johnston at a criucal moment. 
He himself was co-operating constandy with Grant, pre- 
vendng Johnston from reinforcing Lee, and he had no fear 
that his commander would forget or neglect him. There 
was perfect harmony between the chief and his great lieu- 
tenant. So Sherman, moving from Chattanooga, on the 
6th of May, had advanced in a series of skillful movements, 
somewhat similar to those of Grant in the Wilderness. 
The batdes were not so fierce, the opposition not so obsti- 
nate, but the campaign reflected immense credit on Sher- 
man and his army ; and on the 2d of September it was 
crowned with success. Adanta, the first objecdve desig- 
nated to Sherman by Grant, was captured, the result of the 
last of a series of flank movements, which will always be 
memorable in military history. Johnston had at first been 
Sherman's antaoonist, but falling into disfavor with the 



344 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Confederate authorities at Richmond, he had, in July, been 
superseded by Hood, an officer of vastly less ability, but 
with a more reckless audacity. Hood assisted Sherman 
materially by the unskillful character of his operations. 

That which afforded not only Sherman, but Thomas and 
even Grant, opportunity for the conception and execution 
of some of their finest desicrns, was a movement under- 
taken soon after the fall of Atlanta. Sherman, having 
driven Hood's army steadily back a hundred and fifty miles, 
and manoeuvred it out of Atlanta, the great railroad centre 
in Middle Georgia, Hood now thought that, depleted and 
disheartened as his soldiers were, he could assume the 
offensive against the force by which he had been so often 
defeated. Making a wide detour, he advanced to the right 
of Sherman, and moved so as to strike the railroad in rear 
of the Union army, along which all its supplies were con- 
veyed from Chattanooga. Hood's idea evidently was to 
interrupt all of Sherman's communications with the North, 
and thus isolate him in the interior of Georgia. Grant, as 
has been heretofore explained, had never intended to allow 
Sherman to be placed in this predicament ; but had intended 
him, after he arrived at Atlanta, to push on still farther, 
cutting loose from all communication, as Grant himself had 
done at Vicksburg, and striking for the sea, either at 
Mobile or Savannah, as might seem preferable. Mobile, it 
was expected, would be the point ; and, with this view, 
Grant had early ordered Banks to attack and take Mobile, 
so that he might be ready to meet Sherman, when the lat- 
ter pushed on in his interior march. 

As soon, however, as it was apparent to Sherman that 
Hood was attempting to interrupt the railroad line between 
Chattanooga and Atlanta — especially when he saw that this 
was to be done with an entire army — he proposed a modi- 
fication of the plan to Grant. Grant had intended Sher- 
man to hold the line from Chattanooofa to Atlanta, but to 
cut loose entirely from the latter place ; Sherman suggested 
the destruction of Atlanta, and the entire abandonment of 
the line from Atlanta to Chattanooga. Grant thought that, 
in this event, Hood would strike for the North, and that 




MAP SHOWING COUNTRY FROM NASHVILLE. TENN., TO DECATUR, ALA 

(345) 



346 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

even now he was aiming at Middle Tennessee, while Sher- 
man "would meet none but old men, little boys, and rail- 
road oruards in his march through Georo-ia ; " but Sherman 
was positive that Hood would be forced to turn and follow 
him. He thought Thomas, who was now in command of 
Tennessee, would have no important enemy there. Grant 
still insisted that Hood would avail himself of Sherman's 
absence to attack Thomas ; but, after considering the mat- 
ter a day, he sent the required permission to Sherman, 
determining to collect reinforcements so rapidly for Thomas, 
that that officer should be able to withstand any force the 
enemy might send against him. The government was 
strongly in doubt about this whole movement, and even 
after Grant had given Sherman authority for it, the general- 
in-chief was telegraphed to reconsider once more. The 
administration would not take the responsibility of pro- 
hibiting any military operation that Grant ordered, but it 
was anxious to show him how the movement was retrarded 
at Washington. Grant, however, was firm. He believed 
that Sherman would meet with no serious opposition, and 
that the moral effect of his march through the interior of 
the enemy's country, cutting the Confederacy in two again, 
as had been done when the Mississippi was opened, would 
be prodigious. So the orders were not revoked, and Sher- 
man began his preparations for the famous " march to the 
sea." 

On the 1 2th of November the messasfe " all is well "was 

o 

telegraphed to Thomas, the wires were then cut, and Sher- 
man's army stood alone. By the 14th all the troops had 
arrived at or near Atlanta, and by orders of Sherman were 
grouped into two wings, the right and left, commanded re- 
spectively by Generals O. O. Howard and H. W. Slocum. 
The total strength of the army was about 60,000 ; Infantry 
about 54,000; cavalry nearly 5,000; and artillery nearly 
2,000. 

He would be obliged to subsist off of the enemy's country 
during his campaign, so that even an inferior force might 
compel him to head for such a point as he could reach, in- 
stead of one that he might prefer. No definite place where 



WAR OF THE REBELLION, 



347 



he was to come out was therefore fixed, but it was proba- 
ble that it would be at Savannah or Mobile. Atlanta and 
its fortifications were now destroyed, and two corps of 




Sherman's army being sent back to reinforce Thomas, the 
railroad between Chattanooga and Adanta was abandoned. 
Sherman was thus isolated, and started on his march. His 



348 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT, 

condition was in many respects similar to Grant's after 
crossing the Mississippi, in the Vicksburg campaign, except 
in these two important particulars : Sherman's army was 
twice as large as Grant's had been, and Sherman had no 
enemy in his front, while Grant plunged in between two 
hostile armies, one of them greatly larger than his own. 

Grant now bent all his faculties to the task of preparing 
Thomas to defend himself against Hood, who, as the gen- 
eral-in-chief had foreseen, persisted in his northward and 
offensive campaign into Tennessee, leaving the South alto- 
gether open, and Sherman free to choose his route. "Had 
I had the power to command both armies," said Grant, " I 
should not have changed the orders under which Hood 
seemed to be acting." Every effort was made to reinforce 
Thomas before the Confederate army could reach him ; 
troops were withdrawn from Rosecrans in Missouri, from 
A. J. Smith, who had belonged to the Red river expedition, 
under Banks, and recruits and men on furlough were hur- 
ried along every railroad from the North. By dint of im- 
mense exertions Thom.as was reinforced sufficiently to be 
out of any extraordinary danger ; and, although he fell back 
slowly before the advance of the enemy, he managed to 
detain the enemy till the 30th of November, at Franklin, 
where the main force of the Union army was posted, under 
Schofield, Thomas himself having fallen back still farther, 
to Nashville. Here the enemy attacked Schofield re- 
peatedly, but were in every instance repulsed, losing 1,750 
killed, 702 prisoners, and 3,800 wounded. Schofield's 
entire loss was only 2,300. During the night, under 
Thomas's orders, Schofield fell back to Nashville. This 
was done solely in order to concentrate Thomas's- whole 
force. 

On the 15th of December, Hood, having approached still 
nearer to Nashville, Thomas attacked him, and, in a battle 
lasting two days, defeated and drove him from the field in 
utter confusion. Most of the Confederate artillery, and 
many thousand prisoners, fell into the hands of Thomas. 
The enemy retreated at once, but was closely pursued with 
cavalry and infantry to the Tennessee, abandoning most of 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 349 

his artillery and transportation on the way. His army was 
almost completely annihilated. 

Meanwhile, a combined naval and military expedition, 
planned by Grant against Fort Fisher, the defence of Wil- 
mington, at the mouth of the Cape Fear river, after meet- 
ino- with various delays and hindrances, was crowned with 
complete success. This was a triumph of the utmost con- 
sequence. Wilmington was the last remaining place on 
the sea-coast where the blockade maintained by the navy 
was ineffectual, and through this port suppHes of inestima- 
ble value reached the interior. When this place was cap- 
tured, the enemy were indeed shut in from the outside 
world ; and the ever-contracting coils seemed folding closer 
and closer around the doomed and guilty disturbers of 
their country's peace. 

Sherman had penetrated to Savannah by Christmas day, 
not a fortnight after the success of Thomas at Nashville. 
As Grant had foreseen and foretold, he met no opposition 
of importance on the route ; no batde was fought, and, in 
the occasional skirmishes with a small body of cavalry that 
hovered about his flanks, his outguards lost only a few 
hundred men. The campaigrf was one great excursion. 
The country was found to be still abundant in supplies, 
though the railroads could no longer carry its productions 
to the armies at the enemy's front. Sherman destroyed 
the railroads, the arsenals, bridges, and crops, everywhere 
on the route, and marked his course with a broad swath of 
ruin forty miles across. He reached the outworks of 
Savannah in five weeks after he had started, captured a 
fort that protected it without much difficulty, and was met 
at Savannah by fresh instrucdons from Grant, direcdng his 
future movements. 

His march had been unique and interesdng in the ex- 
treme. Certainly no great army ever marched before so 
far through an enemy's country and encountered so little 
opposition. Grant had heard of him by spies and desert- 
ers, and through the Confederate States' newspapers. He 
had been able to follow his march on the maps with very 
litde anxiety, and had felt not half the solicitude for Sher- 



350 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

man that the danger In which Thomas had been placed oc- 
casioned. He had actually started for Nashville, when the 
news of Thomas' brilliant success met him on the way and 
relieved his fears. 

Thomas had so completely placed Hood's army Jiors du 
combat that Grant determined to find other fields of opera- 
tion for his surplus troops. Some were sent to Canby, who 
had superseded Banks, and was ordered to organize the 
expedition against Mobile, which Grant had contemplated 
the year before ; Schofield, with his entire corps, was ordered 
to be sent East, and the remainder of Thomas' available 
command was to be collected at Eastport, on the Tennes^ 
see. Schofield's movement in the dead of winter was diffi- 
cult and painful in the extreme. On the 23d of January 
his corps arrived at Washington ; then it was despatched to 
Annapolis to wait till the ice in Chesapeake bay would 
allow its transportation to the sea, for Grant intended to 
send Schofield into North Carolina to co-operate with 
Sherman. 

The lieutenant-o^eneral had at first thouo^ht to brlno- Sher- 
man by sea from Savannah to City Point, and there, with 
the two great armies of tRe East and the West, to over- 
whelm the last remaining stronghold and army of the rebel- 
lion. Orders to this effect reached Sherman before he ar 
rived at Savannah. He answered promptly that he had 
expected to march by land through the Carollnas and thus 
join Grant, but that it would be at least six weeks after the 
fall of Savannah before he could reach Raleigh, in North 
Carolina, whereas by sea he could join Grant by the middle 
of January. He, therefore, began at once his preparations 
to obey Grant's orders. Grant, however, had before this 
discovered that the difficulty of procuring ocean transpor- 
tation for a whole army would be prodigious, and he was, 
besides, pleased with Sherman's confidence of being able 
to march through the Carolinas. He, therefore, despatched 
directions on the 28th of December for Sherman to start 
by land without delay, and march northward through North 
and South Carolina, breaking up the railroads everywhere. 
This campaign was likely to be vastly more difficult and 




MAP SHOWING THE ROUTE OF SHERMAN'S ARMY THROUGH SOUTH CAROLINA. 

(350 



352 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



hazardous than that which Sherman had already accom- 
plished, for now he would meet an enemy. There were 
still hostile troops on the sea-coast south of Richmond, all 
of whom would be collected to oppose him, and Grant 
feared lest the remnants of Hood's army might be brought 
across from Mississippi, as a forlorn hope, in the last batdes 
of the rebellion. 

Accordingly Schofield, with twenty-one thousand men, 
was sent to North Carolina and instructed to take command 
of twelve thousand more, already there, at Newbern and 
Fort Fisher. He was then to move into the interior of the 
State, striking for Goldsboro, in order to reach Sherman at 
that point, as the latter should be coming north, and to fur- 
nish him with a new base of supplies. A vast accumulation 
of stores was also directed to be ready for the Western 
army when it should reach Goldsboro. Schofield captured 
Wilmington, and, after several skirmishes, which in any 
other war would be called batdes, he reached a point ten 
miles from Cox's bridge, near Goldsboro, on the 2 2d of 
March, 1865. 

Sherman left Savannah on the ist of February, caused 
the evacuadon of Charleston, seized Columbia, had a batde 
at Averysville, in which he was successful, and another at 
Bentonsville, where he encountered Johnston, who had re- 
cendy been put in command of all the enemy's forces that 
could be collected east of the Mississippi, and who were 
not under arms at Richmond. The engagement was not 
decisive, but Johnston retreated, and Sherman followed till, 
on the 2 2d of March, he also arrived at Cox's bridge, 
which Schofield reached the same day, coming from the sea. 
Thus one of the most wonderful pieces of military combi- 
nation that the world has ever seen was accomplished 
under the orders, and according to the plans and instruc- 
tions of Grant. A litde more than four months previous 
the general-in-chief had taken Schofield from Sherman's 
moving column, and ordered him back to the support of 
Thomas in Tennessee. At the same Ume that he brought 
Schofield north from Adanta, he sent Sherman south 
throucrh the heart of the Confederacy. The latter had 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. ' 353 

reached the Atlantic, and then marched north, capturing 
cities and fighting enemies all through the Carolinas. 
Schofield had fought and won the batde of Franklin, had 
borne a disdnguished part in the batde of Nashville, and 
then brought his corps through snows and ice across the 
continent "in mid-winter to the Adandc coast, sailed to 
North Carolina, captured Wilmington, and advanced into 
the interior of the State to rejoin and support his old com- 
mander. Between them they had nearly traversed the 
whole interior region of the enemy. Each arrived on the 
same day at Goldsboro, having traversed thousands of 
miles, No general ever conceived or executed such a 
combinadon as this prior to Grant, and yet you shall hear 
ignorant or hostile cridcs tell us that his success is owing 
to luck. The magnificent scale of his operations; the 
closeness with which he followed and directed them all ; the 
complicated nature of his various evoludons under a dozen 
different commanders; the marvellous skill with which he 
was able to make Sherman march south and Schofield 
north ; to get reinforcements to Thomas from Canby and 
Rosecrans, at the cridcal moment, so as to secure the great 
triumph of the batde of Nashville ; to capture Fort Fisher 
and Wilmington, although at extraordinary risk and after 
peculiar difficuldes, just in dme for those captures to aftord 
immense assistance to other schemes ; subsequendy to 
bring Sherman north and to send Schofield south ; while 
all the while he himself was holding the main force and 
greatest army of the rebellion not only at bay, but in terror 
for its existence — this fact alone rendering all the operations 
of his subordinates possible ; all this may be luck, but it is 
such luck as never followed any soldier before in history ; 
it is such luck as it is greatly to be desired shall always at- 
tend the armies of the republic ; it is such luck as nations 
have always recognized, securing for themselves the ad- 
vantages it brings by placing its possessors in civil as well 
as military power. 

One beaudful and magnanimous trait of Grant deserves 
to be chronicled here. While he assigned to his subordi- 
nates all these brilliant and important parts of his plans. 
23 



3 54 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

and retained for himself not only the most difficult but the 
least inspiring of all, he never manifested a particle of 
jealousy at the reputation which he enabled Sherman, and 
Sheridan, and Thomas, and Schofield, and Terry to acquire. 
Not only did he urge upon the government the promotion 
of those officers, as well as of Meade, but he sought every 
other means to bring them into notice. His wonderful sa- 
gacity was manifest in detecting not only their ability, when 
nobody else perceived it, but in recognizing the pecuHar 
quality of each man's talent: the original genius of Sher- 
man, which fitted him for the great march ; the brilliant 
vigor of Sheridan, which enabled him to conquer Early; 
the splendid determination of Thomas, which alone re- 
tarded Hood until the hour had come for his annihilation; 
the sagacity of Schofield, the talent of Terry. But, more 
than all this, when he had lain many weary months in front 
of Petersburg, making movements all of which tended 
gradually to his eventual success, but none of which re- 
sulted so immediately in what the country desired as to be 
recognized by the country ; while he was in reality con- 
ceiving and inspiring and direcUng every one of his great 
subordinates, he never sought to take from them an atom 
of their own glory ; nor even when the ignorant bestowed 
on the executor all the praise, did the conceiver attempt to 
attribute to himself his own. He was calm, padent, un- 
selfish, magnanimous. He was not anxious for fame, but 
for the salvation of the country. When Sherman pene- 
trated to the Adantic coast and accomplished his wonderful 
march, Grant, who had taken all of its responsibility, was 
still sitting quiedy in front of Petersburg ; and the country 
rang with applause for the brilliant lieutenant, affording no 
share of this to the chief who had sent the lieutenant on 
his errand, and by his other movements, a thousand miles 
away, had rendered the success of the lieutenant possible. 
It was even proposed in Congress to place Sherman in the 
rank which Grant enjoyed. Sherman wrote on the subject 
at once to Grant, saying that the proposition was without 
his knowledge, and begging Grant to use his influence 
against it. This, of course, Grant refused to do, and re- 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 355' 

plied to Sherman: ''If you are put above me, I shall 
always obey you just as you always have me." The history 
of the world may be searched in vain to find a parallel of 
magnanimity, friendship, and patriotism. 

In January, 1865, foreseeing the approaching termination 
of the war, and anxious to make the downfall of the Confed- 
eracy complete. Grant directed Thomas to send out several 
expeditions into the region between the AUeghenies and 
the Mississippi, in order to accomplish the destruction of 
all the remaining resources and communicadons of the 
enemy. Stoneman was sent from East Tennessee into 
South Carolina, to attract all attention from Sherman in his 
northward march, and Wilson was ordered into central 
Alabama, which was now entirely exposed and unprotected. 
Canby also, who was in command of everything in the 
reo-ion of the extreme southwest, was directed to organize 
an^xpedition against Mobile, and Sheridan received orders 
to move from the valley towards Lynchburg, in the rear of 
Lee, so as to destroy every possible means by which the last 
of the great Confederate armies could draw their supplies. 
Thus, from every direcdon, raids were being made at and 
into the vitals of the rebellion, while Grant sull held the 
main army in his front. His plans had annihilated all of 
the resources of the enemy; his subordinates had attacked 
all the important outside points ; his movements had con- 
quered all the Confederate armies but one, and now he was 
ready to deal the death-blow for which he and the nation 
had been waiting so long. Now, at last, the country began 
to perceive the consummate nature of his strategy; now it 
hQcrsin to recognize the master in the movements of his sub- 
ordinates ; now it detected the unity of his plans, discover- 
ing that Sherman and Sheridan and Schofield and Thomas 
were moving towards one centre, and that that centre was 
Grant ; that they were all inspired by one mind, and that 
that mind was Grant's. The enemy, also, too plainly saw 
and felt, for the first dme, that they had a master; they 
turned and writhed, they showed a bold front, but they 
were aware that the hour had come, that their schemes had 
been met by counter-schemes; that they were outgener- 



356 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

ailed, outmanoeuvred, outmarched, outfought, outwitted, 
conquered, although the final blow was not yet struck. 

In March, Grant ordered Sherman, who had now reached 
Goldsboro, to come in person to City Point, and receive 
verbal instructions. Before Sherman arrived, Sheridan 
had completely destroyed all the canals and railroads to 
the northwest of Lee, and was ordered to bring his whole 
force to Grant, who now directed Sherman to prevent any 
concentration between Lee and Johnston, and to be ready 
to come to the support of Grant, if the latter should so in- 
struct. Sherman spent a day at City Point, and returned 
to his command. 

On the 29th of March, Sheridan having arrived in front 
of Petersburg, Grant began the final campaign of the war. 
On the 25th, Lee had made an assault on Grant's lines, 
which must have been a mere frantic stroke, with no hope 
of success. It was promptly repelled, the enemy losing 
heavily in killed and wounded, and Grant capturing two 
thousand prisoners. Grant immediately took advantage 
of this, and made a counter advance on the left, which was 
successful, nearly a thousand more of the enemy being 
captured, and many others killed and wounded, and a por- 
tion of Lee's line taken and held. Grant had been ex- 
tremely anxious for months lest the enemy should withdraw 
from Richmond to Petersburo-. He was unwillincr to move 

o o 

in attack with the Army of the Potomac until his great plans 
for the entire continent should be further consummated; 
until Sherman and Schofield could be brought so near, that 
Lee could have no chance of escape, even if he attempted 
it; but now all things were ripened, every command was 
in its right place ; from all directions he had brought his 
armies, and, on the 29th of March, he moved. 

Lee still, by superhuman exertions, had collected seventy 
thousand men, besides the local militia of Richmond, and 
the gunboat crews on the James, which amounted to at 
least five thousand more, and wliich were always put into 
a fight by the Confederate general. Grant left a large force 
in front of the enemy's works, in order that, if the enemy 
should be induced to come out and attack the national 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 357 

column while In motion, the troops in the trenches might be 
pushed against the fortifications in their fronts. Sheridan, 
Grant detached and sent to the extreme left, to be ready to 
cut and cross the two southern railroads which Lee still 
retained, the South-Side and the Danville. With the re- 
mainder of his force, Grant moved to the left for the last 
time, and began to feel the enemy. He soon discovered 
that Lee was still confronting him at every point, and con- 
ceived, therefore, that the enemy's line must be weakly 
held. He determined, in consequence, to move no farther 
out, but to send a corps of infantry to Sheridan, who was 
still on the extreme left, so that he might turn the enemy's 
right flank, while with the rest of the force Grant would 
order a direct assault on the Confederate line. Meantime, 
Lee had not yet lost all spirit ; he hoped still to gain some 
advantage, under cover of which he could join Johnston, 
when the two armies might perhaps be able to make a 
campaign against Grant's united forces in the interior. 
Accordingly, one or two feeble attacks were made by Lee, 
but immediately repelled with loss. In these various opera- 
tions, Sheridan was separated from Grant's left, with a view 
to making the contemplated flank attack on Lee ; and the 
latter discovering this, immediately reinforced his own right 
largely, and moved against Sheridan. Instead of retreat- 
ing upon Grant wath his whole command, to tell the story 
of having encountered superior force, Sheridan deployed 
his cavalry on foot, leaving mounted men only to take 
charge of the horses. This skilful ruse compelled the 
enemy also to deploy over a vast extent of woods and 
broken country, and made his progress slow. Sheridan 
now informed Grant of what had taken place, and Grant 
promptly reinforced him with the Fifth corps. On the ist 
of April, thus reinforced, Sheridan attacked Lee's right at 
Five Forks, assaulted and carried the fortified posidon of 
the enemy, capturing all his ardllery, and between five 
thousand and six thousand prisoners. The defeat w^as 
decisive. The enemy fled in every direction, and the bulk 
of the force that had been in front of Sheridan never was 
able again to rejoin Lee. 



358 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

News of the victory reached Grant at nine o'clock in the 
evening. He at once determined that the hour had come 
for the final assault. Without consulting any one, he wrote 
a despatch to Meade, ordering an attack at midnight, all 
alono- the lines in front of Petersburg, which were at least 
ten miles long. The corps commanders, however, could 
not be ready until dawn, and it was therefore postponed to 
that time. Before daylight a prodigious bombardment was 
begun, and at four o'clock the various columns moved to 
the assault. Grant's calculations were correct ; the enemy's 
works were carried In three different places. Lee's army 
was cut In two or three parts ; many Instantly fled across 
the Appomattox, while the main portion retreated into the 
city of Petersburg, which w^as still defended by an Inner 
line. Grant got his men up from the extended field which 
they now occupied, and pursued the enemy Into the town ; 
several thousand prisoners and many guns were taken 
before dark. 

That night the enemy evacuated Petersburg and Rich- 
mond, flying southwest towards Danville. So the goal that 
our armies had been four years seeking to attain was woa 
Grant did not wait a moment, but, without entering Rich- 
mond In person, pushed on In pursuit at daylight, on the 3d, 
leaving to a subordinate the glory of seizing the capital of 
Virginia. The energy with which he now followed the un- 
happy Lee was terrific ; he disposed his columns on two 
roads, and marched with marvellous speed. Sheridan, Ord, 
Meade, vied with each other in their efforts to overtake and 
annihilate the last ficrhtino: force of the rebellion ; and the 
men murmured at no labors or dangers. Meanwhile, 
Grant, as he was pursuing Lee, sent orders to Sherman to 
push at once against Johnston, so that the war might be 
finished at once. " Confederate armies," he reminded him, 
"are now the only strategic points to strike at." Sheridan, 
with the Sixth corps, came up with Lee, on the 6th, at 
Sailer's creek, struck the enemy in force, and captured six- 
teen pieces of artillery and 7,000 prisoners, among whom 
were seven generals. Ord also engaged the enemy on this 
day at Farmvllle. Every day Lee made superhuman exer- 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 359 

tions to get beyond the pursuer's reach ; everywhere found 
himself circumvented, outmanoeuvred, or beaten down again. 
No time was left him to get supplies; his men were sub- 
sisting on two ears of corn a piece per day, and the arrange- 
ments he sought to make to procure them rations were 
discovered and frustrated by Grant. A train of cars loaded 
with. supplies was captured by Sheridan, and a wagon-train 
with rations was set on fire by artillery. 

On the 7th of April, Grant addressed a note to Lee, 
summoning him to surrender ; but Lee sought to gain time, 
either hoping yet to reach Johnston with some fragments 
of his army, or at least to allow Johnston an opportunity to 
escape. Lee said he was not certain the emergency had 
arisen to call for his surrender; whereupon Sheridan was 
thrown around in front of Lee, and drove him from Appo- 
mattox, capturing twenty-five pieces of artillery. This, 
probably, rendered Lee less uncertain about the emergency. 
But Grant declined entirely to treat for peace ; all he wanted 
was surrender. He now sent the Twenty-fourth corps, 
under Ord, and the Fifth, under Griffin, to support Sheri- 
dan, thus completely surrounding Lee, who was fairly out- 
marched ; Sheridan was planted square across his only road 
of escape. The great cavalryman at once began to attack. 
Lee, who, at first believing there was no Infantry in his front,, 
endeavored to drive Sheridan away ; but suddenly discov- 
ering the presence of two corps of infantry, which he had 
not deemed it possible could have marched fast enough to^ 
pass his own troops, he at once sent word to Sheridan that 
he was negotiating with Grant. 

On the 9th of April, Lee asked for an Interview with the 
commander of the Union armies, for the purpose of sur- 
rendering his forces, and early in the afternoon of that 
memorable day the two antagonists met In a plain farm- 
house, between the armies which had striven against each 
other so long. 

Lee had one staff officer with him, and with Grant were 
about a dozen of his subordinates — Sheridan, Ord, and his 
own staff. And there Grant drew up the terms upon which 
Lee surrendered. Grant first announced what he should 




LEE SURRENDERING TO GENERAL GRANT. 



(360) 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 36I 

demand, and Lee acquiesced. No one else spoke on the 
subject. Grant then wrote out the stipulations ; they were 
copied by staff officers ; Lee signed them, and the Army 
of Nordiern Virginia was prisoner of war. The terms are 
world renowned : '* Officers and men were paroled, and al- 
lowed to return to their homes, not to be disturbed by 
United States authority so long as they observed their 
paroles and the laws in force where they might reside." 
All arms, artillery, and public property were to be turned 
over to officers appointed by Grant. These were the stipu- 
lations, as Lee consented to them ; but after he had signified 
his acceptance, Grant inserted the clause that the side-arms 
and private horses and baggage of the officers might be 
retained. Lee seemed much gratified at this magnanimity, 
which saved him and his officers the peculiar humihadon of 
a formal surrender of their w^eapons. He asked, how about 
the horses of the cavalry men, which in the Confederate 
army were the property of the private soldier. Grant re- 
plied that these were included in the surrender. Lee lool^ed 
at the paper again, and acquiesced in Grant's interpretadon. 
The latter then said, " I will not change the terms of the 
surrender, General Lee, but I wall instruct my officers, who 
receive the paroles, to allows the men to retain their horses, 
and take them home to work their litde farms." Again Gen- 
eral Lee expressed his appreciadon of the generosity of his 
conqueror, and declared that he thought this liberality 
would have a very good effect. So the Interview termi- 
nated. 

The next day, Grant and Lee met again on horseback, In 
the open air, and for two hours discussed the situadon of 
aftairso Lee expressed a great desire for peace, believed 
that his surrender was the end of the war; he acquiesced 
In the abolition of slavery, the return of the seceded States, 
and declared his wish for harmony. Grant urged him to 
use his Influence to bring about such a result. Subse- 
quendy,on the same day, Longstreet, Gordon, Heath, Pickett, 
Wilcox, W. H. F. Lee, and every other officer of high rank 
in Lee's army, came in a body to pay their respects to Grant, 
and, as they themselves expressed it, to thank him for the 



362 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

terms he had allowed him. All manifested the kindest 
spirit. Many of Grant's officers were present at this re- 
markable Interview, and not a word was said on either side 
calculated to wound the feelings of any one present. Many 
of the enemy declared how unwillingly they had entered the 
war ; all submitted fully to the inevitable ; many expected to 
be exiled ; none dreamed of retaining any property ; they 
expected all their lands to be confiscated, and themselves to 
begin life all over again. 

One of the few surviving eye-witnesses of Lee's sur- 
render at Appomattox was interviewed some time ago con- 
cerning General Jubal Early's recent denial of the story 
that Lee's sword was tendered to Grant. The man's name 
is Benjamin Jeffries, and he is a carpenter by trade and a 
resident of Des Moines. He served through the war in a 
Pennsylvania regiment, and at the time of Lee's surrender 
was a member of Company A, One Hundred and Ninety- 
first "Bucktalls." 

When asked as to the circumstances that followed the 
close of the fighting at Appomattox, he said : 

"After fighting ceased General Grant rode to the front, 
where our regiment was deployed on the skirmish line, and 
ordered that a guard be stationed across the road leading 
down to the village and that no one be allowed to pass. 
About two o'clock in the afternoon he returned, accom- 
panied by an escort of 200 or 300 officers. Leaving all 
but one aide behind, he rode through the lines and down 
the slope towards the Court-House, a short distance off. 
As he did so General Lee, accompanied by one aide, came 
towards him from the opposite direction. 

''About seventy-five yards from where we were stationed 
on guard stood a small story-and-a-half log-house, near 
which grew a large apple tree. Grant and Lee met at this 
point and halted under this tree. Lee rode a large, hand- 
some roan, while Grant was mounted on a small, black 
horse. Dismounting, Lee drew his sword and offered it to 
Grant, but Grant refused to accept it and, declining it with 
a wave of his hand, it was put back in the scabbard. Then 
Grant offered his hand to Lee and they shook hands, as did 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 363 

their aides, and all engaged in conversation for about five 
minutes, when, remounting, they rode away to the Court- 
House, where the papers completing the terms of the sur- 
render were drawn up. 

" I saw the first meeting between General Grant and Gen- 
eral Lee. I saw Grant refuse to take Lee's sword, for I 
stood less than a hundred yards from them at the time, and 
watched every movement they made. I have as vivid a 
recollection of that scene as if it took place yesterday." 

Colonel Charles Marshall, chief of General Lee's staff, 
speaking of the surrender at Appomattox and of the meet- 
ing of Generals Grant and Lee, says: "When shown into 
the room General Grant advanced and shook hands with 
General Lee. The Federal commander was in undress 
uniform and without side-arms, while General Lee was in 
full-dress uniform. General Grant, by way of apology to 
General Lee for coming without his side-arms, said that his 
sword was with his baes^aee and because of his desire to 
reach the place for the conference he had hastened on in 
undress uniform. This was the only allusion to a sword 
that was made at the interview." 

''After the terms of surrender were settled. General 
Gran't explained that he was advised that General Lee's 
forces had a number of Federal prisoners, who, like their 
captors, were out of rations. General Sheridan said that 
he could supply 25,000 rations. Grant then instructed him 
to send 25,000 rations to Lee's commissary. After the in- 
terview Lee asked for General Williams and thanked 
that officer for kindness shown to his son. General Custis 
Lee, who had been captured several days before." When 
Lee and Colonel Marshall rode off, the Federal officers 
filled the front porch. Colonel Marshall is not sure that 
Grant was among them, for his thoughts were busy with 
Other matters at the time. 

General Badeau thus describes the surrender of Lee: 

" The two armies came together in a long valley at the 
foot of a ridge, and Appomattox was on a knoll between 
the lines which could be seen for miles. The McLean 
house (which Lee had selected as the place of meeting) 



364 LTFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Stood a little apart, a plain building with a veranda in front. 
Grant was met by Lee at the threshold. There was a nar- 
row hall and a naked little parlor containing a table and two 
or three chairs. Into this the generals entered, each at first 
accompanied only by a single aide-de-camp, but as many as 
twenty Federal officers shordy followed, among whom were 
Sheridan, Ord and the members of Grant's own staff. No 
Confederate entered the room but Lee and Colonel 
Marshall, w^ho acted as his secretary. The two chiefs 
shook hands, and Lee at once began a conversation, for he 
appeared more unembarrassed than the victor. The con- 
versation at first related to the meeting of the two soldiers 
in earlier years in Mexico, when Grant had been a subaltern 
and Lee a staff officer of Scott. Lee, however, soon 
adverted to the object of the interview. ' I asked to see 
you, General Grant,' he said, ' to ascertain upon what terms 
you would receive the surrender of my army.' Grant re- 
plied that the officers and men must become prisoners of 
war, giving up, of course, all munitions, weapons and sup- 
plies, but that a parole would be accepted, binding them to 
go to their homes and remain there until exchanged or 
released by proper authority. Lee said that he had ex- 
pected some such terms as these, and made some other 
remark not exactly relevant, w^hereupon Grant inquired : 
' Do I understand. General Lee, that you accept these terms?' 
* Yes,' said Lee, ' and if you will put them into writing I 
will sign them.' 

"While Grant was writing he chanced to look up at Lee, 
who sat nearly opposite, and at that moment noticed the 
glitter of his sword. The sight suggested an alteration in 
•the terms, and he inserted the provision that officers should 
be allowed to retain their side-arms, horses and personal 
property. Lee was evidently touched by this clemency, 
and especially by the interpolation which saved so much to 
the feelings of soldiers. He said at once that the con- 
ditions were magnanimous, and would have a good effect 
upon his army. Grant went even further than this, and 
subsequendy instructed the officers who received the paroles 
to allow the cavalry and artillerymen to retain their horses 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 365 

and take them home to work their Httle farms. Lee then 
explained that his men were starving. They had Hved, he 
said, on two ears of corn a day for several days. There 
was a train of cars, he said, at Lynchburg loaded with 
rations which had come from Danville for his army. Would 
Grant allow these to be distributed among the prisoners ? 
Grant, however, informed him that this train had been cap- 
tured the day before by Sheridan. Thus, at the moment 
of his surrender, Lee was absolutely dependent for sup- 
plies upon his conqueror. Grant, of course, acquiesced in 
the request, and turning to the officer of the commissariat 
on his staff, directed him to issue 25,000 rations that night 
to the Army of Northern Virginia. 

** The formal papers of surrender were now signed ; a few 
more words were exchanged by the men who had opposed 
each other so long; they again shook hands and Lee went 
to the porch. The national officers followed and saluted 
him, and the military leader of the rebellion mounted his 
horse and rode off to his army, he and his soldiers 
prisoners of war." 

The following description of the memorable beginning 
of the month of March, 1865, is given by General Mahone, 
then a general of the Confederate army, now a Republican 
and readjuster United States Senator from Virginia : 

"The first week in April found Lee's army encircling 
Richmond and Petersburg, and practically surrounded by 
the Union forces. Our object was to escape capturfe and 
to retreat in such a manner that we could make a junction 
with Johnston's army in North Carolina. My division on 
the 2d of April was posted at Chesterfield Points, facing 
the enemy. I was summoned to Lee and instructed to fall 
back to xA.melia Court-House, protecting the rear of the 
Confederate retreat. At Amelia Court-House we expected 
to find full rations for the men from Richmond, but were 
disappointed. From the Court-House, our troops moved 
by different routes along the line of the Richmond and Dan- 
ville Railroad, until we came to Sailer's creek. The army 
moved up the creek, Longstreet's division in front, and 
mine bringing up the rear. The enemy was in hot pursuit. 



366 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

and we were closely pressed. At Rice's Station the 
Federals attacked us, and Longstreet engaged them. I 
had been summoned to Lee, and while we were talking 
General Vanable rode up. Turning to Lee, he said: 

" ' General, did you receive my message ? ' 

" ' What message ? ' Lee inquired. 

"'I informed you, sir, that the enemy had captured our 
wagon train at Sailer's Creek,' was the response. Lee in- 
stantly ordered me to move my division to the creek, and 
as I rode off to execute the movement he accompanied me. 
We soon reached the scene of the engagement, and the 
sight that met our gaze, as from an eminence we looked 
down upon the battle-field, made me sick at heart. 

" The Federal cavalry had completely routed our men 
and were pursuing them in every direction. Infantrymen 
had thrown away their arms and were fleeing for life. 
Teamsters had cut the traces of their harness and were 
scampering away, leaving guns and wagons behind. One 
single piece of artillery at a distance was occasionally firing 
a shot without the slightest effect. 

"Taking in the scene at a glance Lee exclaimed: ' My 
God ! has this army dissolved ? ' There was that in his tone 
and manner which convinced me that the end had come, 
and for a second I was too much shocked to speak. Then 
I told him that the army had not dissolved, and that one 
command at least was ready to fight. The general rode 
sadly away and I posted my men, being fully satisfied that 
the enemy would not fight any more that night, for it was 
then nearly dark. The day's fighting had practically ended, 
and, after performing my duties, I rode down to the field, 
where I found Lee sitdng on his horse with a Confederate 
flag in his hand, surrounded by a shouting mob of demor- 
alized Confederate soldiers. I took the flag from him and 
the men were ordered to the rear under the command of 
General Anderson. 

''Our next move was to cross the Appomattox. I took 
my command to High Bridge, three miles from Farmville, 
where there were two bridges, one the high railroad bridge 
and another an improvised wagon bridge. I met Generals 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 367 

Gordon and Anderson near High Bridge, after moving my 
men over, and had a talk with them. They beheved that 
the defeat at Sailer's Creek had settled the fate of the 
Confederacy. I agreed with them that our army was 
ruined. I told them that I thought the officer next in com- 
mand to General Lee should see him quickly and inform 
him that it was the judgment of his officers that we were 
beaten. It was agreed that General Anderson should go 
immediately to General Longstreet and have him tell Lee 
our views. About two o'clock on the morning of the 7th 
I left the conference and went over the river to look after 
my division. All that was known of Lee's movements was 
that he would cross over to Farmville and unite with us 
not far from that place, and we would continue the retreat 
toward Lynchburg. I made a reconnoissance of the roads 
in the dark, and returned to High Bridge about daylight. 
The enemy's skirmish lines were advancing toward the 
bridge, which, contrary to orders, had been burned. 

"A brigade was sent out to check the advance of the 
Federal skirmishers. I had found a road leading to Cum- 
berland Church, which joined the main road over which Lee 
was expected to approach. I formed my division in line 
of batde and received an order from General Lee to hold 
the enemy back. General Miles commanded the advance 
of the Union forces and he attacked me and we repulsed 
him ; but this temporary victory closed our short line of 
batde, and he manoeuvred with his superior force to turn 
our flank. I ran out a battery of artillery on the flank I 
saw he was endeavoring to turn, and in a short time he had 
captured our guns. Just then, fortunately, the advance of 
Lee's forces came up, and a North Carolina division, con- 
taining about a full regiment of men, charged the Federals 
and recaptured the guns. 

"Lee and Longstreet soon came up in force. During 
the afternoon General Miles marched a brigade around 
our flank and got in my rear. While he was executing 
that movement I marched two brigades in the rear of Miles' 
men and attacked them savagely. We nearly annihilated 
the briorade, killing: over seven hundred men in the action. 



368 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

In the meantime Anderson had communicated with Long^ 
street, and, while I knew nothing- of what had taken place, 
it was evident from the action of Longstreet and Lee that 
the former had broached the subject of surrender, and that 
the latter would not entertain the proposition. 

" That night while I was preparing to cover the retreat 
of our army, about ten o'clock, I saw a ball of fire sus- 
pended over the head-quarters of the Union forces, which 
meant a flag of truce. I obtained permission to receive 
the flag, and sent a detachment with my provost-marshal 
to meet the truce party. When the provost returned I 
was resting myself In a negro cabin. 

" ' I have a letter for General Lee,' he said. 

" ' Yes, and J. know what that means,' was my answer. 

" ' It Is a demand for the surrender of the Confederate 
army.' 

" I subsequently learned from General Grant himself that 
this letter, demanding the surrender, was written on the 
hotel porch In Farmvllle. 

"An odd Incident happened at this time," continued Gen- 
eral Mahone, "and when you hear It you may think I am 
very superstitious. On my march I always carried at the 
head of my division an army wagon containing my personal 
supplies. This wagon had been captured by the Union 
soldiers. I knew this, because some of my men reported 
that they had found letters belonging to me on the bodies 
of some of Miles' troops killed that afternoon. After hand- 
ing me the letter for General Lee the provost-marshal said : 
*I have also something for )ou from General Miles.' 

"'Stop!' I exclaimed. 'I know what you have for me. 
I have a presentiment that General Miles sent me my wife's 
daguerreotype, which was In my trunk captured by the 
Federal forces.' The provost took from his pocket the 
daguerreotype and handed it to me with a letter Irom Gen- 
eral Miles, stating the circumstances under which It had 
been found. I sent my compliments to him for his civility, 
and about eleven o'clock our army was in full retreat. 

"We marclied all night and the next day, until about 
four o'clock In the afternoon, when we went into camp 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 369 

three miles south of Appomattox Court-House. Longstreet 
and Gordon were in front, and my division and General 
Fields' division were drawn in line of battle to cover the 
rear. At daylight we moved to Appomattox and then 
halted. I received a message from Lee to come to the 
front. I found him just this side of the court-house, with 
Longstreet and his staff, warming themselves by a fire. 
Lee asked his staff to retire, and then he said that he had 
sent for me because he was in trouble. 

"'Well, what is the matter now? ' I asked. 
'*'I suppose you know that Grant has demanded our 
surrender,' he repHed. 

" ' No, I do not know it, but I suspected it,' was my an- 
swer. 

" 'Well, he has demanded our surrender, and I want to 
know what you think about it. We have only 8,000 mus- 
kets and two organized bodies — yours and Fields'.' 

" * I take your purpose, General Lee, to be to effect a 
junction with Johnston in West North CaroHna ? ' 
" ' Yes, sir,' said the general. 

" ' In my judgment,' said I, " ' this junction can be formed 
only in one of two ways — first to cut through the enemy's 
lines and fight our way out, and that can only be done at a 
great cost of life. If successful we will only have a mere 
remnant of the army left, and that remnant cannot be re- 
cruited and equipped by a government in a wagon. I can- 
not see how you could supply an army with munitions and 
rations. We have another chance to get to Lynchburg, 
but we will certainly be harassed every step of the way, 
and when we get there we will be still farther away from 
Johnston.' I told him that the time had come when I 
thought he was called upon to perform the highest duty 
that could devolve upon an individual, to undergo a test of 
the highest degree of manhood ; that the time had come 
when, in my judgment, it was his duty to surrender the 
army ; that I believed it would be a crime under the circum- 
stances to sacrifice the life of another man. I told him that 
if the terms offered by General Grant were such as we were 
entitled to receive I should surrender immediately. If not 
24 



370 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



I would fight it out here. He then handed me General 
Grant's letter containing the proposed terms of surrender. 
I read it and told him that I thought the terms were as 
honorable as could be asked by a defeated army. Lee 
turned questioningly to Longstreet, who simply said: *I 
agree with Mahone.' 

" ' What will the country say ? ' asked Lee. 

"'You are the country now,' I answered. 'Our people 
will approve.' He said he did not know where to find 
Grant. I told him to get on his horse and hunt him up. 
He left Longstreet in command of the army, and rode away 
in search of the Federal commander, accompanied only by a 
courier. I went back to my division, which Fields had put 
in line of battle, and told him what had occurred at the 
front. 

•' To avoid another enoraorement we sent out a flao^ of 
truce. When the men formed in line they began diggmg 
trenches and otherwise arranging for what they supposed 
to be an impending battle. They were ordered to stop 
work. It was the first order of the kind they had ever re- 
ceived under such circumstances. The soldiers seemed to 
understand what it meant without knowing anything of the 
events of the past twenty-four hours. As by instinct they 
realized that the war had come to an end. Some of the 
men began to cry, others threw their arms in joy around 
the necks of their comrades. Many of them broke their 
sword-blades and threw away their bayonets. I hastened 
out of sight of this affecting scene and rejoined General 
Lee at a little stream near Appomattox Court-House. 
Colonels Taylor and Stevens and several other officers 
were with him. I had scarcely reached the general's side 
when I saw a Union officer riding down the road from the 
court-house accompanied by a courier. He approached 
within loo feet of General Lee, at the same time saluting 
him, removing his hat, and took a note from his pocket, 
which General Taylor received and carried to General Lee. 
He read the note and answered it, and the Union officer 
rode back to the Federal head-quarters. General Lee 
stood in the dirt road. He took the note, tore it up in 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 37 1 

little pieces and threw them upon the ground and with 
his heel stamped them under the dirt and out of sight. 
I mounted my horse and rode away and General Lee 
went to meet General Grant. That is all I saw of the 
surrender." 

On the day of meeting Lee, Grant started for Wash- 
ington. He was well aware that the war was closed. He 
knew that after the surrender of Lee and the capture of 
Richmond, no other force would remain in arms, and he was 
anxious at once to proceed to lessen the expenditures of the 
government, and to muster out his soldiers. He hastened 
from Appomattox to City Point, everywhere on the route 
the inhabitants coming out '' to see the man who had 
whipped Lee." Then, without even yet stopping to enter 
the capital that he had conquered, or the lines that had 
withstood him so long ; without apparently a particle of the 
natural and pardonable self-glorification of a victor under 
such extraordinary circumstances, this man, as modest in 
triumph as he had been persistent in difficulty, and saga- 
cious in council, and daring in danger, went on to Wash- 
ington, to engage in the unobtrusive but still vastly impor- 
tant duties of retrenchment. 

In this concluding and most glorious of all the campaigns 
of the war, Grant had lost 7,000 men, in killed, wounded, 
and missing. He had captured Petersburg and Richmond, 
and won, by his subordinates, the battles of Five Forks and 
Sailer's Creek, besides numerous smaller ones ; he had 
broken the lines at Petersburg in three different places, cap- 
tured 20,000 men in actual battle, and received the sur- 
render of 27,000 others at Appomattox, and absolutely an- 
nihilated an army of 70,000 soldiers. Ten thousand, at 
least, of Lee's army deserted on the road from Richmond 
to Appomattox, and at least 10,000 more were killed or 
wounded. From Lee's own field-return, we learn his force 
at the beginning of the campaign. Such an absolute anni- 
hilation of an army never occurred before, in so short a 
time, in the history of the world. 

On the 29th of March, Richmond was in the possession 
of the enemy; their de facto government was established 



372 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



and recognized over hundreds of thousands of miles ; the 
forces of Lee hned fifty miles of works that defended Peters- 
burg and the capital ; their greatest commander was at the 
head of 70,000 veterans. In less than two weeks, Rich- 




RUINS OF RICHMOND AFTER THE WAR. 

mond and Petersburg were captured cities, the lines that 
had defended them so long w^ere useless, except as trophies 
of the humiliation of those who built them ; their govern- 
ment, so called, was a fugidve ; their army w^as not only de- 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 373 

feated, but stricken out of existence ; its general, and every 
man under him who had not been killed, was a prisoner of 
war. 

This last campaign was so short that its history was 
hardly reported at the time, and its results were so stupen- 
dous, that its own amazing character has hardly yet been 
recognized. For splendid marching, for repeated and 
victorious battles, for capture of works thought to be im- 
pregnable, for vigor and rapidity of movement, and remorse- 
less energy, it will compare favorably with any achievements 
of ancient or modern times. 

The total loss during the entire year, among the troops 
immediately under Grant, including those commanded by 
Butler in the first month of the campaign, amounted to 
12,695 killed, 47,822 wounded, and 20,498 missing; total, 
82,720. Against this, it is impossible to set off an exact 
statement of the losses of the enemy, for no reports were 
ever made by them of the final battles of the war. There 
was no one to whom to report. But Grant captured alone 
66,512 Confederate soldiers in that time, besides the killed 
or wounded. He absolutely annihilated every army op- 
posed to him ; that of Lee, that of Early, of Beauregard, 
and all the forces brought from West Virginia and North 
and South Carolina to reinforce Lee ; leaving not a living 
man at the last of all those armies who was not a prisoner. 
So that, with forces not a fourth greater than those of his 

antaeonist, and in spite of the enormous advantages of 

• 111'' 
defensive breastworks everywhere enjoyed by that antago- 
nist, and which far more than balanced Grant's superiority 
in numbers, he accomplished military results that for com- 
pleteness are utterly without precedent. 

Thus ended the greatest civil war in history. Lee sur- 
rendered on the 9th of April, and on the 13th Grant was 
back in Washington, and at once urged upon the President 
and the Secretary of War that, as the rebellion was a thing 
of the past, the work of cutting down the military expenses 
of the government should begin ; accordingly, on the day 
of his arrival at the capital, the following announcement 
was made to the country: 



374 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

War Department, Washington, April iT,thj 6 P. M. 

The Department, after mature consideration and consultation with the 
Lietcte?iant-Ge7ie7'al w^oYi the results of the recent campaign, has come to 
the following determinations, which will be carried into effect by appro- 
priate orders, to be immediately issued : 

First, to stop all drafting and recruiting in the loyal States. 

Second, to curtail purchases of arms, ammunition, quartermasters* and 
commissary supplies, and reduce the military establishment in its several 
branches. 

Third, to reduce the number of general and staff officers to the actual 
necessities of the service. 

Fourth, to remove all military restrictions upon trade and commerce, 
so far as may be consistent with public safety. 

These important reductions in expenditure announced to 
the nation the absolute overthrow of the rebelHon and the 
return to peace. The enthusiasm natural over the im- 
mense success that had been gained at once broke out all 
over the land. In Washington a ereat illumination of all 
the public and many private buildings took place, and on 
the 14th of April, the day after Grant's return, it was an- 
nounced in the public journals that he would accompany the 
President that evening to Ford's Theatre ; but Grant had 
not seen his children for several months, and had a distaste 
for public demonstrations. He therefore declined the 
President's invitation, and started on the evening of the 
14th for Burlington, New Jersey, where his children were 
at school. Thus, fortunately for America, did Providence 
again direct the movements of her greatest captain, and 
preserved him in peace, as it had done in war, for the 
future emergencies which he was destined to control. 
That night, as is too well known in the history of the coun- 
try, the President was assassinated at the theatre. It was 
clearly proven, in the proceedings of the trial, that the con- 
spirators intended also to take the life of him who had so 
recently preserved the life of the country. The attempted 
visit to Burlington took Grant unexpectedly out of the 
reach of the assassin's blow. The Secretary of War at 
once telegraphed to the general-In-chlef, who returned the 
same night to Washington, having got no farther than 
Philadelphia. 



I 



376 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

This extraordinary and melancholy event, and the novelty 
of the arrangements which it imposed on the government, 
retained Grant in Washington for several days. The 
funeral of the President took place on the 19th of April; 
his successor, Andrew Johnson, having been inaugurated 
immediately upon the death of Mr. Lincoln, on the 15th. 

In obedience to Grant's order, of the 5th of April, to 
"push on from where you are, and let us see if we cannot 
finish the job with Lee's and Johnston's armies," Sherman 
had moved up at once against Johnston, who retreated 
rapidly before him through Raleigh, which Sherman 
entered on the 13th. The day preceding, news had 
reached him of the surrender of Lee. On the 14th, a cor- 
respondence was opened between Sherman and Johnston, 
which resulted, on the i8th, in an agreement for a suspen- 
sion of hostilities, and a memorandum or basis for peace,, 
subject, of course, to the approval of the President. The 
memorandum was forw^arded first to Grant, who imme- 
diately perceived that the terms were such as the country 
v^oulcl not consent to, as they allowed the enemy to deposit 
their arms and public property in the several State arsenals, 
stipulated for the recognition of the Confederate State 
governments by the authorities at Washington, secured to 
the enemy, without exception, all their political rights and 
franchises, as well as their rights of person and property, 
and, in fact, announced a complete and absolute amnesty, 
simply on condition of the disbandment of the Confederate 
armies, the laying down of arms, and the resumption of 
peaceful pursuits by those who composed those armies. 
Nothing was said about the abolition of slavery, the right 
of secession, punishment of past treason, or security against 
future rebellion. Grant forwarded the papers to the Sec- 
retary of War, and asked that a Cabinet meeting might be 
called at once, to determine what action should be taken, for 
there was no time to lose. Grant received Sherman's 
despatches on the evening of the 20th, and the Cabinet 
meeting was called before midnight. Grant was present. 

The President and his Secretaries were unanimous in 
condemning the action of Sherman ; indeed, their language 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 377 

was SO Strong, that Grant, while agreeing fully with them 
that the terms were inadmissible, yet felt it his duty to his 
friend to defend his conduct from the imputations it excited. 
He declared that the services Sherman had rendered the 
country for more than four years entided him to the most 
lenient judgment on his act, and proved that whatever 
might be said of his opinions, his motives were unques- 
tioned. The President was especially indignant at Sher- 
man's course, and the sympathy for the enemy which it was 
thought to reveal. 

Grant was instructed to start at once for Raleigh, and as- 
sume command in person, revoking the terms, and there- 
after take whatever action he thought fit. He started 
before daybreak of the 21st, and arrived at Raleigh on the 
24th. There he informed Sherman of the disapproval of 
his memorandum, and directed him to exact from Johnston 
the same terms which had been crranted to Lee. Sherman 
at once notified Johnston that their arrangement had been 
disapproved ; and a second set of stipulations was drawn 
up, in conformity with Grant's instructions. Grant mag- 
nanimously kept himself in the background ; he was not 
present at any interview with Johnston, remaining at Ra- 
leigh while Sherman went out to the front ; and his name 
does not appear in the papers, except where, after the sig- 
natures of Sherman and Johnston, he wrote, "Approved: 
U. S. Grant." This the Confederate commander was not 
aware of, and Grant actually went back to Washington 
without Johnston's suspecting that he had been at Raleigh. 
He allowed Sherman to receive the surrender, although he 
could, in compliance with the especial authority and orders 
given him in Washington, have had the glory of accepting 
the capitulation of Johnston, as well as that of Lee. What 
other living man would have been capable of such self-ab- 
negation ? and yet, how infinitely greater the glory of de- 
clining ! One hardly knows which to admire most, at this 
supreme crisis in the history of the country and of the man 
— the magnanimity manifested to his enemy at Appomat- 
tox, or the generosity displayed to his friend at Raleigh. 

Grant went immediately back to Washington, taking care 



378 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



everywhere to defend Sherman ; throwing around his friend 
the shield of his own great reputation, and assuring every- 
body that Sherman's loyalty was as unquestioned as his 




PRESIDENT JOHNSON. 



own The indignation throughout the land was intense, 
and nothincr but Grant's own splendid fame, and the per- 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 379 

sistency with which he fought for Sherman, saved that 
illustrious soldier from insult, and perhaps degradation. 

On the 28th of April, Grant was again at his head-quar- 
ters, now established at Washington, and the same day 
orders were issued for the reduction of the forces in the 
field and garrison, and the expenses of every department 
in the army. 

The various expeditions of Stoneman, Wilson and Canby 
had meanwhile accomplished all that they were sent to do. 
There was no force of consequence left in front of either 
of them. Canby took possession of Mobile on the i ith of 
April, Wilson roamed unmolested and almost unopposed 
through the interior of Alabama, until he was arrested by 
the news of the surrender of Lee, and Stoneman had a 
similar career in North Carolina. But as soon as the 
various Confederate forces, large or small, heard of the dis- 
asters of Johnston and Lee, and the terms accorded to 
them, they also made haste to offer themselves as candi- 
dates for the same mercy extended to their comrades. 
During the month of May, the last armies of any strength 
left were those under Dick Taylor and Kirby Smith, who 
surrendered on the same terms, and, by the ist of June, not 
an armed enemy remained in the land. 

The collapse of the Confederacy was one of the most as- 
tounding features connected with the war. Not a gun was 
fired in hostility after the surrender of Lee. Not a soldier 
held out ; not even a guerilla remained in arms ; none hesi- 
tated not only to give a parole, but to volunteer an oath of 
allegiance to the government they had offended. Great 
part of this wonderful acquiescence in the results of the 
war was owing to the magnanimity of the terms accorded 
by Grant. No greater stroke of statesmanship can be 
found recorded in history. Knowing, as he did, the ex- 
hausted condidon of the enemy — aware that they could 
hope for no after success, and yet might prolong the fight- 
ing for a year in the interior, with small detachments ; par- 
tisan bands, holding out here and there all over the coun- 
try ; collecting together as fast as they were separated; 
renewing the fight after they seemed subdued — he deter- 



380 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

mined to grant them such terms that there would be neither 
object nor excuse left them for such a course. The con- 
summate wisdom of his conduct was proved by the haste 
which the enemy made to yield everything they had fought 
for. They were ready not only to give up arms, but, as has 
been said, to swear fidelity to the government. They ac- 
quiesced in the abolition of slavery, they abandoned the 
heresy of secession, and waited in humility to see what else 
their conquerors would dictate. And they did this in excel- 
lent spirit. They said they had staked all, and lost all ; 
they. admitted it was fair that the government should treat 
them as conquered rebels ; they were thankful for their 
lives ; they did not know if their lands would be left them ; 
they dreamed not of political power ; they did not hope to 
vote ; they only asked to be let live quietly under the flag 
they had outraged, and attempt in some slight degree to 
build up their shattered fortunes. Many openly declared 
they were even more likely to prosper than during the 
days when the rebellion had existed. Some announced 
that they were glad that the war had ended as it did, and 
were proud to be back again under the government under 
which they had been born. The greatest general of the 
rebellion asked for pardon. 

General Lee and the Confederates had returned to their 
desolated homes on their parole of honor. The victorious 
Northern and Western armies, under command of Grant 
and Sherman, were encamped in and around Washington 
city. Jefferson Davis was an inmate of a casement in Fort- 
ress Monroe, and Edwin M. Stanton was the power behind 
the throne who ran the government while Secretary of War. 

Generals Grant and Rawlins were playing a game of bil- 
liards in the National Hotel, and two civilians were indulg- 
ing in that pastime on an opposite table. A major in the 
regular army entered the spacious room in a hurry and 
whispered to General Grant. The latter laid his cue on the 
table, saying: ''Rawlins, don't disturb the balls until I re- 
turn," and hurried out. The writer remarked to his com- 
panion : " Pay for the game and hurry out. There is some- 
thing up." 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 38 1 

General Grant had reached the street, where, in front of 
the hotel, stood a mounted sentinel. Grant ordered the 
soldier to dismount and springing Into the saddle put spurs 
to the horse and rode up the avenue so fast as to attract 
the attention of pedestrians. The first civilian questioned 
the soldier as to the cause of such sudden haste on the part 
of General Grant, but was answered with the surprise of 
one who knew nothing. The second citizen appeared, 
saying, " What has become of Grant ? " 

On being told of the General's break-neck ride up Penn- 
sylvania avenue, it was decided to go to the war depart- 
ment and learn the cause, if possible. Colonel Barroll, of 
the Second regular Infantry, and husband of Sue Denin, 
the actress, was disbursing officer in the quartermaster's 
department, presided over by General Rucker, and to the 
colonel one of the civilians went for information. Asking 
him If he knew the reason of General Grant's hasty action 
and If he had seen the hero of the hour around the depart- 
ment, Colonel Barroll answered, "Yes," but was surprised 
at anybody's knowledge of the event. When told of what 
transpired In the billiard room of the National Hotel, the 
colonel said : '' Well, as you are aware of the coming of 
General Grant, I will tell you all about it, providing you 
promise not to repeat it." 

The promise being given. Colonel Barroll said : " Secre- 
tary Stanton sent for me in reference to the execution of 
certain orders, and while listening to his instructions Gen- 
eral Grant came in. The secretary greeted the general 
with a pleasant * Good-morning,' which the latter returned, 
and in continuation said : ' Mr. Secretary, I understand that 
you have issued orders for the arrest of General Lee and 
others, and desire to know if such orders have been placed 
in the hands of any officer for execution.' 

" ' I have issued writs for the arrest of all the prominent 
Confederates, and officers will be despatched on the mission 
pretty soon,' replied the Secretary. 

" General Grant appeared cool, though laboring under 
mental excitement, and quickly said : 

" ' Mr. Secretary, when General Lee surrendered to me 



382 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

at Appomattox Court-House, I gave him my word and 
honor that neither he nor any of his followers would be dis- 
turbed so long as they obeyed their parole of honor. I 
have learned nothing to cause me to believe that any of my 
late adversaries have broken their promises, and have come 
here to make you aware of that fact, and would also sug- 
gest that those orders be cancelled.' 

*' Secretary Stanton became terribly angry at being 
spoken to in such a manner by his inferior officer, and said : 

"'General Grant, are you aware whom you are talking 
to ? I am the Secretary of War.' 

" Quick as a flash, Grant answered back : 'And I am 
General Grant. Issue those orders at your peril' Then 
turning on his heel. General Grant walked out of the room 
as unconcerned as if nothing had happened. 

"It is needless to say," continued Colonel Barroll, "that 
neither General Lee nor any of his soldiers were arrested. 
I was dismissed from the presence of the secretary with the 
remark that my services in connection with the arrest of the 
leading Confederates would be dispensed with until he took 
time to consider, and I now^ wait the result of his decision." 

Like some cases in law, that decision of the great War 
Secretary was reserved for all time, but whether the game 
of billiards between Generals Grant and Rawlins was ever 
played out to an end has never been definitely known, 
though it was surmised that with the aid of a consoling 
cigar the game was finished. 

Among the reminiscences of the silent soldier, that go to 
show his sterling character, quiet manner and coolness, a 
story told by a sergeant is as follows : 

"One of the very marked features of General Grant's 
life in the field was that no one ever came to his quarters 
on legitimate business or was brought there a prisoner 
who was not kindly and considerately treated. He was 
punctilious in having all persons who came properly to his 
quarters politely treated and cared for. He never gave 
offence himself and would not tolerate it in others. No 
officer in the army ever lived more plainly than General 
Grant, and none was more willing to divide what he had. 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 385 

After a successful battle he never exhibited the slightest 
boastful feeling. To have seen him and heard him talk 
one would suppose he had had nothing to do with the bat- 
tle if it were not for the orders he was dictating for the 
future movements of the army, or for the burial of the 
dead, or for the caring for the sick and wounded. When 
Grant had been given command of all the armies in the 
west he was not as well known in the east as he afterwards 
was, and men began to inquire about him. Judge Porter 
asked an old friend who had been made a pension agent, 
what he knew about him. ' Only this,' was the reply, ' and 
it singularly impresses me. An old gentleman came to 
my office about his pension, whose name proved to be 
Jesse Grant. I asked if he knew this new general. He 
asked, * You mean Lis ? ' 'And then he told me that he 
was his son, and he had just received a letter from him, 
which he showed me. It read somethincr like this: You 
are perfectly right in thinking that I recognize my unfitness 
to command this great army. But I look around me and 
wonder who is more fit. I may not succeed. But if I am 
beaten it will be so badly that I will never be heard of 
again.' No man ever saw General Grant speak or act as 
if he were surprised. His staff officers would try to see if 
they could not get him to exhibit surprise or astonishment 
at some of their stories or by extravagant statements. 
They never succeeded. When every one else was sur- 
prised he never gave any indication that the matter of the 
surprise was not perfectly familiar to him. In the most 
trying times he was the coolest and most self-possessed. 
Nothing ever disturbed Grant's equanimity. He never lost 
his head. You miorht tell him the most startlino- news in 
regard to the enemy, but his face would never indicate that 
it was news to him. If he was ignorant of a matter about 
which you were talking, he would draw you out in such a 
quiet way that you would never imagine that the whole 
matter was not perfectly familiar to him. Upon one occa- 
sion a rather cheeky individual was pestering General 
Grant with questions about some of his campaigns, and the 
results not being to his taste, finally told the general that 



384 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

it was a common criticism passed upon him that he had the 
soldiers, the money and the power, and that any man of 
ordinary capabihties would have succeeded with the same 
opportunities. Grant slowly rolled his cigar from one side 
of his mouth to the other, and answered quietly : ' I have 
heard of these criticisms before. There is only one answer 
that I can make. General Lee surrendered to me. He 
didn't surrender to any other Union general, although I 
believe there were several efforts made in that direction 
before I assumed command of the army.'" 

A sergeant of the Seventh Connecticut, now a resident 
of New Haven, gives the following account of his first 
meeting with General Grant when the army was lying 
before Richmond : " Day after day we had nothing to do 
but lie about the camp. On this day I was sergeant of the 
guard, a detail of eight men being under my charge. Some 
of the boys had swapped papers with the enemy, whose 
picket-line was not far from ours, and had given me the 
Richmond Gazette, I leaned my musket against the trunk 
of a tree, and, sitting on the ground, braced my back 
against the tree and read. It was not long- before I became 
interested in a story and forgot about picket duty, and even 
the war. Suddenly I heard the tramp of a squadron of 
cavalry, and looking up saw a number of horsemen ap- 
proaching. I saw that some of my men were engaged with 
some of the enemy in a game of poker. The officers did 
not stop, but quietly rode past, not without looking at me 
in a peculiar manner. Soon after a single horseman rode 
up. He had on a slouch hat, an old blouse, and his 
breeches were tucked in a pair of old boots. Riding up to 
me, he said : * Sergeant, what are your men doing here ?' 

"'On picket duty,' I replied. 

" 'Where are your men ?' 

"'Oh, over there playing poker,' I said, nodding my 
head in their direction. 

" I thought that he was a correspondent for some paper 
and answered him saucily. Asking my name, regiment 
and company, he rode away. I flung a parting shot at him 
as he did so, asking him if he were not inquisitive. When 



WAR OF THE REBELLION. 385 

we were relieved I was called to the captain's head-quar- 
ters, where I was informed that General Grant had pre- 
ferrtid charges against me. It was he to whom I had been 
impudent. When the captain told me that I was under 
arrest, liable to be shot, I felt like sinking in the ground. A 
court-martial was held, and I was ordered to be shot at 
sunrise. In the few hours that 1 was in the guard-house I 
seemed to live over my life again. Through the efforts of 
General Hawley the sentence was not carried into effect. 
I was punished, however, and lor three days carried a knap- 
sack filled with sand about the camp. When General 
Grant visited New Haven I called upon him. He recog- 
nized me, and as I left he said: 'Always do your duty.'" 

All proclaimed especially their admiration of Grant's 
generosity. General Lee refused to present his petition 
for amnesty until he had ascertained in advance that Grant 
would recommend it. Mrs. Jefferson Davis wrote to Grant, 
and went in person to see him, asking his all-powerful 
influence to obtain a remission of some of the punishment 
of her husband ; and throughout the South his praises 
were on the lips of his conquered foes. 

If this was so at the South, the North awarded him such 
a unanimity of praise and affection as no American had 
ever received before. Houses were furnished and pre- 
sented to him, in Philadelphia, Washington, and Galena; 
magnificent donations of money were placed at his disposal; 
whenever he stepped out of his house, crowds attended and 
applauded him; at every public place, theatre or church, 
the audience or congregation rose at his entrance. If he 
visited a town, the mayor and other authorities welcomed 
him; cities were illuminated because of his presence, pro- 
cessions were formed in his honor, and the whole summer 
of 1865 was one long ovation. The nation felt that it could 
not do enough for the man who had led its armies to vic- 
tory ; men of every shade of political, religious, and social 
opinion or position, united in these acclamations. 

Bgt amid them all Grant preserved a modesty as remark- 
able as the ability which had won them. He made a tour 
of several months through the Northern States, during 
25 



386 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

which probably every distinguished man In the country, 
besides innumerable crowds of less illustrious, but quite as 
hearty and patriotic friends, combined to do him honor ; and 
in all this period, his quiet, unobtrusive manner, his sim- 
plicity of speech and dress, his equanimity and modesty, 
were as much admired as his deeds. To see him, one 
would never have suspected that the parade and celebra- 
tion were on his account. He never spoke of his achieve- 
ments or his success; he never alluded to the demonstra- 
tions In his honor ; he accepted and appreciated tlie kindness 
that was offered him, thanked the people in the simplest 
and plainest terms, and won their love, wliere before he 
had only their admiration and their gratitude. 

The writer has just come in possession of the following 
letter, written by General Grant from Galena to his father- 
in-law, Frederick Dent, then of St. Louis, and Is of special 
interest. We do not remember any other letter from the 
general written at such an early date in which tJ.ie whole 
subject of the war Is so fully treated : 

Galena, April \()fh, 1861. 
Mr. F. Dent — Dear Sir: I have but very little time to write, but as 
in these exciting times we are very anxious to hear from you, and know 
of no other way but by writing first to you, I must make time. We get 
but little news by telegraph from St. Louis, but from all other points of 
the country we are hearing all the time. The times are indeed startling, 
but now is the time, particularly in the border slave States, for men to 
prove their love of coimtry. I know it is hard for men to apparently 
work with the Republican party, but now all i)arty distinctions should be 
lost sight of, and every true patriot be for maintaining the integrity of 
the glorious old stars and stripes, the Constitution and the Union. The 
North i.i responding to the President's call in such a manner that the 
enemy may truly quake. I tell you there is no mistaking the feelings of 
the i)eo|)le. Tiie Government can call into the field not only 75,000 
troo]:)s, but ten or twenty times 75,000 if it should be necessary, and 
find the means of maintnining them, too. It is all a mistake about the 
Northern pocket being so sensitive. In times like the present no peoj)le 
are more ready to give ihf ir own tmie or of their abundant means. No 
impartial man can conceal from himself the fact that in all tlese troubles 
the Southerners have i)een the aggressors, and the Administration has 
stood purely on the defensive — more on the defensive thao she would 
dared to have <lone but for her consciousness of strength and the certainty 
of right prevailing in the end. The news to-day is that Virginia has gone 
out of the Union. But for the influence she will have on the other border 




SCALE or MfLCS 



MAP SHOWING THE ENTRANCES TO CAPE FEAR RIVER AND THE APPROACHES 
TO WILMINGTON, N. C. 

(387) 



388 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

slave States this is not mucli to be regretted. Her position, or rather 
that of Eastern Virginia, has been more reprehensible from the beginning 
%lian that of South Carolina. She should be made to bear a heavy portion 
^f the burden of tiie war for her guilt. In all this I can but see the doom 
«of slavery. The North does not want, nor will they want, to interfere 
\vi:h IJie institution, but they will refuse for all time to give it protection, 
iiinless the South shall return soon to their allegiance; and then, too, this 
disturbance will give such an impetus to the production of their staj^le, 
t:otton, in other parts of the world, that they can never recover the con- 
trol of the market again for that commodity. This will reduce the value 
^f the negroes so much that they will never be worth fighting over again. 

I have just received a letter from Fred. [Frederick Dent, Jr.] He 
breathes forth th-j most patriotic sentiments. He is for the old tlag as 
long as there is a Union of two States fighting under its banner, and 
when they dissolve he will go it alone. This is not his language, but it 
is the idea not so well expressed as he expresses it. 

Julia and the children are all well, and join me in love to you all. 

1 forgot to mention that Fred has another heir with some novel name 
%hat 1 have forgotten. 

Yours, truly, U. S. Grant. 

So passed the summer away. Meanwhile the President 
had been endeavoring to reconstruct the Union. Upon the 
assassination of Mr. Lincohi, there had been o^reat fears 
entertained by all moderate men that the harshness of 
•Andrew Johnson and his revengeful violence towards the 
Confederates would postpone for a long time any real har- 
mony. He had openly announced his belief that all trai- 
tors should be hanged, and had threatened what severities 
he would use, if he were President of the United States. 
Grant himself was sincerely anxious on this matter. The 
extreme violence of the President, when discussing Sher- 
man's terms to the Confederates, increased this anxiety, and 
at first it seemed as if it was destined to have ample cause. 
The President denounced the Confederates bitterly, he re- 
fused to pardon any, he kept many civilians imprisoned, 
he was determined, he said, " to render treason odious ; *' 
he was anxious to try and to punish even those whom 
Grant had paroled. 

Repeatedly, when Grant was summoned to cabinet 
meetings, the President wanted to know when the time 
would come that Lee and other paroled officers could be 
tried and punished; and Grant was obliged to intercede 




(389) 



390 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

and defend them. He maintained that the paroles pro- 
tected them ; that they could not be tried while they obeyed 
the laws and complied with the stipidations they had en- 
tered into. He was obliged more than once to be very 
emphatic on this point. He thought we had received a 
very good equivalent for the lives of a few leaders, by 
securing all their arms and getting diemselves under our 
control, bound by their oaths to obey the law; and, having 
received this consideration, he held that we ourselves were 
bound in honor to maintain them in theirs. 

Grant early recommended the pardon of General Lee, 
on the ground that it would do much to secure harmony; 
and favored that of General Johnston. He never lost a 
chance to show a magnanimous spirit to his fallen foes ; 
and, owing to the feeling of the President, these chances 
were constant and numerous. So it came about that the 
South looked to Grant especially, as their guardian and jjj 
protector against Andrew Johnson. I 

But, as time wore on, the enmity of the President towards | 
those who had been enemies was modified. They made 
haste to subscribe to his terms; whatever he told them to 
do they did, and, pleased with this, he flattered himself that 
he alone could reconstruct the Union. He appointed gov- 
ernors ; he exacted changes in the constitutions ot the 
seceded States; he established a policy — all without the 
sanction of Congress, which w^as not in session, and had 
no power to summon itself, and which he persistently re- 
fused to call together, lest it should obstruct his policy ; so 
that, by the ist of December, when Congress by law as- 
sembled, he had built up a system of reconstruction, for 
which neither the constitution nor the laws of the land 
could afford any authority. It was true the times wt^re 
revolutionary, but his acts were autocratic, assuming to him- 
self powers more extraordinary than any potentate in Eu- 
rope ventures to exercise. He could easily have called the 
Congress and consulted with them, and, if they differed 
with him, he was but the executive and they the legislative, 
the law-making power of the government. 



CHAPTER X. 

GENERAL OF THE ARMY. 

Dissensions between President Johnson and Congress — Grant takes no part — Grant's 
Southern tour — Open rupture between President Johnson and Congress — The Phila- 
delphia Southern Convention — Grant proniDted to the rank of General of the army, 
expressly created for him — Mexico — Grant refuses a sj^ecial mission to Mexico — 
Sherman is sent in his place — Congressional reconstruction of the Southern Slates — 
Grant's statesmanship — Opposition to President Johnson — Suspension of Slanton 
— Grant appointed his successor — Stanton reinstated — Grant's controversy with 
President Johnson — A spicy correspondence — Impeachment of Johnson — Grant 
nominated for President. 

Congress met, and it was apparent that Johnson's plan 
was not approved by either House. He had not exacted 
the guarantees which Congress insisted were necessary 
from those lately in rebelHon. He was wilHng to admit 
them at once to a full share in the government; Congress 
thought measures should be taken to secure what had been 
won by the war. He seemed wilHng to withdraw the mili- 
tary from the South; Congress wished it to be retained. 
He would permit those who had been prominent in treason 
to retain that prominence in the rescued government; Con- 
gress was unwilling for this. He made no provision for 
the protection and elevation of the emancipated millions 
of necrroes ; Con^^ress thouoht this was one of the first 
duties of the nation. 

Grant took no part in the contest between the two divi- 
sions of the government. He was purely a military officer, 
and unwilling to obtrude himself into civil affairs. He was 
anxious for perfect harmony and peace to be re-established 
throughout the land, and inclined to the most lenient treat- 
ment of the Confederates, consistent with retaining the 
advantages that had been so de^arly bought. And ahhough 
he wr-s not consulted in the pohcy originated by the Presi- 
dent, y^t, iis the latter did not choose to call Congress 

(391) 



392 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

together, and as it was necessary to construct some system, 
he acquiesced when the President enunciated his plan. But 
he always thought and said, that whatever the President 
did must be provisional ; he held that Congress, the repre- 
sentative of the people, must eventually decide what the 
law should be. 

In November, before Congress had assembled, the Presi- 
dent sent Grant to make a tour through the South, and to 
report upon the condiuon of affairs. He returned In about 
three weeks, having visited Richmond, North and South 
Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee. Everywhere he was 
received with great respect by the people. The governors 
and mayors called to pay him their respects, the State leg- 
islatures invited him to their chambers and rose in form to 
greet him, addresses were made him, and though there 
was no enthusiasm, there was a decided cordiality. In pri- 
vate many of the most prominent civilians and generals of 
the rebellion called on him. 

His report to the President was dated December i8th, 
1865. It stated that " the mass of thinking men of the 
South accept the situation of affairs in good faith." 
Slavery and the right of secession they had entirely aban- 
doned, and some of their leading men even declared tb.at 
the result of the war was fortunate. Grant recommended, 
however, that a strong military force should still be retained 
at the South, although he believed that " the cidzens ot that 
region were anxious to return to self-fxovernment within 
the Union as soon as possible." 

In February th.e quarrel between the President and Con- 
gress came to an open breach. Grant had striven haru to 
prevent this ; he felt the necessity of harmony betu een 
these two branches of the government at this important 
crisis, and went from one to another, using the immense 
weight and Influence which his achievements gave him to 
heal the discord. Many Congressmen, also, were ex- 
tremely unwilling to come to a rupture widi the President 
whom they had elected. But Mr. Johnson was determined 
that his policy should prt^vall, and would listen to no over- 
tures from Congress in which this was not stipulated. 



I 



GENERAL OF THE ARMY. 393 

The Preslde^nt, altbouo;h he liad enforced the abolition of 
slavery upon the South, ordt-riiiL^- the States to insert it in 
their con-.tiLuti()ns, was violently opposed to this necessary 
corollary of cniancipation — the rearrangement of repre- 
sentation. He strove to form a new party which should 
maintain his i.)olicy, and political strife at once arose all 
over the land. 

Grant had watched the course of events with great con- 
cern ; he had no idea of relinquishing one iota of the re- 
sults that he had attained. As early as January, 1866, he 
issued an order directing that no officer of the army should 
be su^'d, tried, or punished in any way by a civil court at 
the South for acts done durinor or since the rebellion. 
Complaints against officers or soldiers by civilians or ex- 
Coi-jfederates must be lodged with their military superiors 
alone. Soon after this he refused the Governor of Ala- 
bama permission to reorganize the militia of that State ; he 
declared " he could not see the propriety of putting arms 
into the hands of the militia until the rights of all classes 
of ci izens should be perfectly secure, and the regular 
United States forces withdrawn." He also attempted to 
restrain, or at least rebuke, the extremely offensive tone 
which the Southern press had begun to assume, and directed 
his subordinates to forward to his head-quarters copies of 
any publications calculated to disturb the public peace, or 
manifesting a revival of the old rebellious spirit. He was 
not among those who forgot that there had been a tre- 
mendous rebellion and a terrible civil war. He knew too 
w^ell the cost that the country had paid to suppress that 
rebellion, and watched the change in the feeling and temper 
of the South closely, determined to do all in his power to 
avert further trouble. 

While the contest betw^een the President and Congress 
was at Its height, a meeting of all those who supported 
Mr. Johnson's views was called at Philadelphia. This was 
attended by some excellent and patriotic men, who thought 
less restrictive measures than those proposed by Congress 
would best accomplish reconstruction. But the great bulk 
of the men who had supported and carried on the war held 



394 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

themselves aloof from this attempt to inaugurate a new 
party. 

A delegation was appointed by the Philadelphia conven- 
tion to present resolutions of sympathy to the President, 
approving of his policy rather than that of Congress. Mr. 
Johnson was extremely anxious to gain the countenance of 
Grant on this occasion. Accordingly, on the morning of 
the arrival at the White House of the delegation from 
Philadelphia, the President sent Grant a note, requesting 
his presence at the Executive Mansion. Grant went to the 
White House, expecting to transact business with the 
President, and was ushered into the East Room where he 
found several hundred delegates paying their respects. 
The President made room for him at his side, arjd the dele- 
gates, alter speaking to Mr. Johnson, all turned and shook 
hands with Grant. This was heralded all over the country 
as a proof that Grant approved the President's course, and 
had taken this means of showing his position. 

Shortly afterwards the President determined to make a 
tour to Chicago, and invited Grant to accompany him. It 
had now become apparent that the lines w^ere to be drawn 
closely in politics, and that for Grant to accompany Mr. 
Johnson on his tour would be taken as an indication that 
he was a supporter of the President. Grant was especially 
anxious not to be regarded as a partisan ; the elections 
were about to occur, and he was willing for the country to 
decide which policy it would adopt. He begged the Presi- 
dent to excuse him from going on this trip. But Mr. 
Johnson repeatedly urged him to go, and finally, as a per- 
sonal matter, renewed his invitation. It would have been 
very indecorous in the general-in-chlef to persist in refusal, 
and, very much against his w^ill, he accompanied Mr. John- 
son on the famous tour. Grant kept himself as much as 
possible in the background, and positively refused to make 
any speeches, although repeatedly called on ; but, as he had 
foreseen, the advocates of the President declared that his 
presence during the trip was positive evidence of his ad- 
herence to the presidential policy. 

In July, 1866, he was promoted to a new rank, created 



1 



GENERAL OF THE ARMY. 395 

expressly for liiin by Congress — that of General of the 
Army; it was the higrhest ever known in the American 
army. The appointment was unanimously confirmed, and 
the commission issued at once. It was everywhere under- 
stood that this was done as a national and formal recogni- 
tion of his illustrious services in the field. 

In the fall of this year, the elections for the succeeding 
Congress took place, the only question at issue being the 
policy of reconstruction. The campaign was vigorous, 
and the result unmistakably proclaimed the will of the 
people. By large majorities the country spoke in favor of 
the Congressional plan. The proposed amendment to the 
Constitution was submitted to the various State Legisla- 
tures at the North, and ratified by them, and Republican 
members of the Fortieth Congress were elected all over 
the land by increased majorities. 

But Mr. Johnson was still far from submitting. He had 
opposed Congress, appealing to the people ; but, when the 
people decided against him, he was as determined as ever. 
Grant, however, considered that " the zuill of the people is the 
lavj of the land',' and that it was the duty of every executive 
officer not only to submit, but to "take care that the laws 
be faithfully executed," no matter what his own opinions 
might be of the justice or even constitutionality of those 
laws. He now used every means to induce the Southern 
people to accept the terms of reconstruction offered them 
by Congress — to adopt the constitutional amendment, and 
return in good faith to that Union which they had striven 
so hard to overthrow. Hie. influence with Southerners had 
be(^n great; no one of distinction at this time ever was in 
Washington without visiting his house or his head-quarters, 
and to all who came he proffered the same advice. 

The invasion of Mexico, by the French, during the exist- 
ence of the armed rebellion, was undoubtedly undertaken 
in the interests of that rebellion ; and when our internal war 
was over. Grant, regarding the French occupation as only 
a part and parcel of the rebellion, was very anxious to 
compel the evacuation of Mexico. He did not think it 
would be necessary to resort to arms in order to accom- 



^gS LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

plish this, but he believed that a threat of war, In case the 
evacuation was not immediate, would have the desired 
effect. 

He uro^ed repeatedly and earnestly upon the govern- 
ment, that now was the time, while we had still hundreds 
of thousands of men in arms, to say to the Emperor of the 
French, that we could not tolerate the occupation of Mexico 
by a Europ(-an power. Before our armies were disbanded, 
he ordered Sheridan, with a large force, to the banks of the 
Rio Grande, especially to watch the movements in Mexico, 
and with the hope that he could persuade the government 
to call peremptorily upon France to withdraw. But the 
Secretary of State had no relish for such positive proceed- 
ings. Hie President professed to wish to see the French 
leave Mexico, but he never followed Grant's advice in the 
matter. He never summoned France to leave, until he 
knew that her troops were embarking. Still Grant kept 
up for two years his anxious and earnest importunity on 
this subject. He spurred on the unwilling government, 
and whatever was accomplished in this matter was due. in 
reality, to his pertinacity, and to the threat which the pres- 
ence of Sheridan, with an army on the Rio Grande, con- 
stantly offered to Louis Napoleon. Besides this, Grant 
openly spoke in favor of his views — a course most unusual 
with him — and fostered, by every means in his power, the 
popular feeling against the French occupation. He con- 
stantly advised that arms should be supplied the Mexicans 
by our government; he encouraged the Mexicans whom 
he saw/to hold out; and was, by far, //le most active and 
persistent friend of the Monroe doctrine in America. It is 
not too much to assert, that it was this unintermitted effort 
and influence of his, that stimulated the government and 
menaced the Emperor of the French, and that finally se- 
cured the evacuation of Mexico. 

But for this the policy of the Secretary of State would 
have lasted till now% and die Empire of Maximilian would 
have still existed. No peculiar interest in Mexico had been 
manifested by the government for months; it was known 
tliat the French Emperor was tardily preparing to withdraw 



GENERAL OF THE ARMY. 397 

his troops; there was not the shadow of a real cause for 
the proposition; but all at once, in November, 1866, the 
President informed Grant that he meant to send him to 
Mexico. He was to go, not at the head of any army, but 
on a diplomatic mission, in connection with Colonel L. D. 
Campbell, who had recently been appointed minister to 
Mc'xico ; but who, it was supposed, could not be confirmed 
by the Senate. There was no special object of the mission 
announced; Grant was simply to go to Mexico, and ex- 
amine, as well as he could, into the state of affairs ; he was 
given no powers or authority, not even that of an ordinary 
minister, and was not instructed or empowered either to 
make demands, or to back his statements with menaces or 
men. He was simply to give Lewis D. Campbell the 
" benefit of his advice^ " in carrying out the vis trice t ions of 
the Secretary of State!' 

The device was transparent to the far-seeing, honest 
man. and he prompdy declined to go. This was in conver- 
sation with the President. But a day or two afterwards 
the President returned to the subject, and urged the em- 
bassy on Grant, saying he had sent for Sherman to take 
his place in the meantime. Congress was about to assem- 
ble, ar^d the air was full of rumors that the President would 
refuse to acknowledge the validity of Congress, and attempt 
to disperse it by arms. Mr. Johnson had recendy seemed 
to have peculiar designs in regard to Maryland. Grant 
remembered all this, and again declined to leave the 
country, this time in writing. After this, he was summoned 
to a full cabinet meeting, where his detailed instructions 
were read out by the Secretary of State, as if the objecUons 
and refusal had been of no account. Grant was now 
aroused, and, before the whole cabinet, declared his unwill- 
ingness to leave. Whereupon the President, not answering 
Grant, turned to the Attorney-General, and asked him 
whether there was any reason why Grant should not. obey 
this order — whether he was ineligible to the position in any 
way. Grant at once started to his feet, and exclaimed, *' I 
can answer that question, Mr. President, without appealing 
to the Attorney-General. I am an American citizen, have 



393 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

been guilty of no treason or other crime, and am eligible to 
any civil office to which any other American is eligible. But 
this is a purely civil duty, to which you would assign me, 
and I cannot be compelled to undertake it. Any legal 
military order you give me, I will obey ; but this is civil and 
not military, and 1 decline the duty. No power on earth can 
force me to it," and immediately left the cabinet-chamber. 

Even after this, copies of his instructions were forwarded 
to him through the Secretary of War, who was directed to 
request him to proceed to Mexico. He now wrote a second 
letter, declining most positively the duty assigned him. 
But, meanwhile, Sherman had been sent for, and had ar- 
rived. The country was rife with rumors of the object of ^ 
his coming ; the administration had to conjure up some *1 
excuse for sending for him. The President, therefore, 1 
urged him to accept die position of Secretary of War ; but 
this Sherman peremptorily declined. So, after a day or 
two. Grant was directed to turn over his instructions for the 
Mexican mission to Sherman, and Sherman was sent to 
Mexico with Campbell, while Grant was let alone. Sher- 
man accomplished nothing by his mission, as neither he nor 
any one else expected he w^ould ; and, after a month or so, 
he returned. For all that was done, he might as well have 
remained in St. Louis; but it was necessary to save the 
credit of the administradon, and he was made the scape 
goat. 

When it was definitely known that the terms upon which 
readmission to the Un-on was proffered to those who had 
been in rebellion had been refused, although those terms 
had been submitted to the people of the North, and by 
them overwhelmingly approved. Congress at once set about 
the work of reconstruction, whether the Southern States 
agreed or not. It was accordingly decreed that the colored 
people should vote on equal terms with the white. When 
State constitutions, in conformity with this condition of affairs, 
should be formed by this increased voting population, pre- 
sented to Congress, and accepted by it, the military rule 
should cease, and the Confederate States be admitted again 
to an equal share in the government. 



GENERAL OF THE ARMY. 399 

This Is the Congressional system of reconstruction, 
enacted by Congress, in March, 1867; it was i)assed over 
the veto of the President, and, because of the Presidc-nt's 
known and pronounced opposition to it, a supervisory 
power over the mihtary district commanders was given to 
Grant. 

From this time, however, he entered upon one of ihe 
most difficult administrative positions that any soldier or 
civlhan was ever called upon to fill. A subordinate of the 
President, he was yet in some important respects declared 
independent of him ; and it was made his duty by the law 
to carry out a policy which the President sought by every 
possible means to thwart and destroy. 

No statesman ever had so delicate or difficult a task be- 
fore. To the performance of this task he brought ereat 
sagacity, untirmg patience, and a desire to do justice to all. 
He believed that the old spirit of the war had revived at 
the South to such a degree, that strenuous repression of it 
was necessary. He advised the removal from office of all 
persons who were not really anxious to renew their alle- 
giance to the flag; at the same time he repeatedly urged 
upon Congress the remission of the penalties of treason in 
the case of those whose course proved that they were now 
really loyal. By this spirit his whole course was guided. 
He had no power to order the district commanders in the 
discharge of their civil duties, but he advised them con- 
stantly; and, with a single exception, they always asked 
and took his advice as orders. 

Under his wise and really pacific management, the evil 
spirit at the South began to subside, murders were less 
common, justice was more frequent, the population itself 
declared its satisfaction with military rule, its preference 
for this to any other government. Meanwhile, the regis- 
tration of the new voters commenced, and all things went 
on smoothly. It seemed as if the reconstruction measures 
must succeed, and peace was to come at last to this dis- 
tracted land. 

But now President Johnson discovered some loopholes 
in the law through which he still might be able to frustrate 



400 I^IFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

the will of the representatives of the people. He had 
been left the power to appoint the district commanders. 
He had appointed them all — Sheridan, Schofield, Sickles, 
Pope and Ord ; all soldiers, who, before the war, were with- 
out any tinge of abolition sentiment; all men who, since 
the war, had evinced the strongest sympathy with the 
original magnanimous policy Inaugurated by Grant. But 
all were men accustomed to obey the law ; all strove 
heartily to carry out the laws of Congress imder which 
they were appointed ; and it was through their united 
endeavors that the success of the reconstruction measures 
seemed likely to be ensured. The President endeavored 
to thwart their action, and repeatedly obliged Grant to 
<lefend them. He took the position that the reconstruction 
acts were unconstitutional, and that, therefore, he was not 
bound to obey them. Grant held that only the Supreme 
Court could pronounce on this question of constitutionality 
or unconstitutionality ; and diat, till that tribunal should pro- 
nounce, all officers, from the President down, were bound 
to obey these laws. The Attorney-General gave opinions 
in favor of many of the President's views, especially de- 
claring that any person at the South who was willing to 
take the oath of allegiance should be registered as a voter. 
Congress had expressly directed that certain classes at the 
South should be excluded from the franchise. The Presi- 
dent directed Grant to forward this opinion to the district 
commanders. He obe)'ed, but at the same time informed 
them that the law made them their own Interpreters of 
their powers and duties ; and as the President did not 
choose absolutely to direct him or them to act according to 
this opinion, they did not do so. The President in the 
summer of 1867 determined to remove Sheridan, as well 
as the Secretary of War, who was the only member of his 
cabinet not In harmony with him. 

1 he President's unwillingness to conform to the measures 
of Congress had been so great, that the national legislature, 
on adjourning In the spring, had left Itself at liberty to 
meet again in July, if the action of the President rendered 
this desirable. There was no doubt on the subject when 



GENERAL OF THE ARMY. 4OI 

the time came. Congress met, and placed the subject of 
reconstruction still more completely in the hands of the 
general of the army. It had been thought that Mr. John- 
son would endeavor to remove Mr. Stanton, because of 
his sympathy with Congress, and a law had been passed, 
taking from the President the power to remove his cabinet 
ministers without the consent of the Senate, llie Presi- 
dent had vetoed the bill, but it was passed over his veto, 
he declaring it unconstitutional, and threatening not to obey 
it; and after Congress again adjourned, he announced to 
Grant his intention to remove the Secretary of War, and 
to make Grant the successor of Stanton. 

But Grant at once protested against the removal of 
either Mr. Stanton or General Sheridan. He did this in 
conversation, when the matter was originally mentioned ; 
afterwards, he addressed the President a letter, marked 
" Private," in which he used the following words : 

" On the subject of the displacement of the Secretary of 
War: His removal cannot be effected against his will 
without the consent of the Senate. It is but a short time 
since the United States Senate was in session, and why not 
then have asked for his removal, if desired ? It certainly 
was the intention of the le^i-lative branch of the orovern- 

o o 

ment to place cabinet ministers beyond the power of ex- 
ecutive removal, and it is pretty well understood that, so 
far as cabinet ministers are affected by the * tenure-of^office 
bill,' it was intended specially to protect the Secretary of 
War, whom the country felt great confidence in. The 
meaning of the law may be explained away by an astute 
lawyer, but common sense, and the views of loyal people, 
will give it the effect intended by its framers." 

This delayed the President's action for a week or so; but 
on the 1 2th of August, Mr. Johnson, acting in strict con- 
formity with the provisions of the tenure-of-office bill, sus- 
pended Mr. Stanton from office as Secretary of War, and 
appointed Grant ad interim in his stead. He had first re- 
quested Mr. Stanton to resign ; but that officer declined, 
stating that grave considerations- of public duty impelled 
him to this course. 
16 



402 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

From the first day till the last of his service as Secretary 
of War, he maintained, earnestly, the opinions which his 
letters of August ist and 17th indicate. For a few days 
after his entrance upon his new duties, nothing was said 
about the removal of Sheridan, and Grant began to hope 
that the removal of Stanton would satisfy Mr. Johnson. 

On the 17th of August without further premonition 
President Johnson directed Grant to issue an order remov- 
ing Sheridan, and substituting General George H. Thomas 
in his stead. That sturdy patriot, however, had no idea of 
being brought in to obstruct the laws of the land, and wrote 
at once in the most urgent terms to request not to be sub- 
stituted for Sheridan. Thereupon General W. S. Hancock 
was appointed. 

In announcing these orders to Grant, the President in- 
vited any remarks from the general-in-chief which he might 
choose to make, and the general replied in a letter, in 
which he used the following patriotic words : 

** I am pleased to avail myself of this opportunity to urge, 
earnestly urge, urge in the name of a patriotic people, who 
have sacrificed hundreds of thousands of loyal lives, and 
thousands of millions of treasure, to preserve the integrity 
and Union of this country, that this order be not insisted 
on. It is unmistakably the expressed wish of the country 
that General Sheridan should not be removed from his 
present command. This is a Republic, where the will of 
the people is the law of the land. I beg that their voice 
may be heard. General Sheridan has performed his civil 
duties faithfully and intelligendy. His removal will only be 
regarded as an effort to defeat the laws of Congress. It 
will be interpreted by the unreconstructed element in the 
South — those who did all they could to break up the 
government by arms, and now wish to be the only element 
consulted as to the method of restoring order — as a 
triumph. It will embolden them to renewed opposition to 
the will of the loyal masses, believing that they have the 
executive with them." 

In a short time the whole correspondence between the 
President, himself, and Mr. Stanton, was given to the 



I 



GENERAL OF THE ARMY. 403 

country, in answer to several calls from Congress, and the 
position of Grant became established. To add the peculiar 
duties of a cabinet officer to those with which Grant was 
already intrusted, by virtue of his position as general of the 
army, and those imposed on him by the reconstruction laws, 
was to make him almost more powerful than the President, 
and to oppress him with still heavier and more complicated 
responsibilities than any he had yet incurred. But he was 
able, with wonderful sagacity, to act so as for a long while 
to seem to command the approbation of all, even of the 
adherents of the President. The following extracts from 
his correspondence with Mr. Stanton show his relations 
with the man whom he had superseded: 

" Sir : Enclosed herewith I have the honor to transmit 
to you a copy of a letter just received from the President 
of the United States, notifying me of my assignment as 
Secretary of War, and directing me to assume those duties 
at once. In notifying you of my acceptance, I cannot let 
the opportunity pass without expressing to you my appre- 
ciation of the zeal, patriotism, firmness and ability with 
which you have ever discharged the duties of Secretary of 
War." 

To which Mr. Stanton replied in the following well- 
chosen words : 

. . " You will please accept my acknowledgment of the 
kind terms in which you have notified me of your ac- 
ceptance of the President's appointment, and my cordial 
reciprocation of the sentiments expressed." 

At the same time. Grant's letters to the President had 
sufficiently explained to the country his sympathy with the 
policy of Congress. But as he was now ad interim Sec- 
retary of War, it was necessary for him to attend cabinet 
meetings, and therefore to be present at many political 
discussions, for whose tendency he had neither interest nor 
approbation. He therefore represented to the President 
that, as he was only holding the office of Secretary of War 
until another should be appointed, and that not by his own 
suggestion or desire, and as his legitimate position was 
that of General of the Army, who might be compelled to 



404 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

serve under successive administrations, he should be ex- 
cused from participation in the purely partisan duties of a 
cabinet minister. The President at first paid no attention 
to his request, but subsequently Grant renewed it re- 
peatedly, and at last was accustomed to remain at cabinet 
meetings only long enough to present his papers as Secre- 
tary of War, and transact the purely official business of his 
post. He was then in the habit of retiring. This indicated 
very plainly to the President, and the other members of 
his administration, that Grant was determined not to be 
considered one of them in purely political matters. 

He was sometimes requested to remain, and give his 
opinions on matters not strictly within his province as Sec- 
retary of War, and when he did so, those opinions were as 
pronounced as possible. The discussion of the constitu- 
tionality of the tenure-of-office bill, and other measures 
connected with the reconstruction acts of Congress, was 
frequent at such times, and Grant never left the President 
or his cabinet in doubt as to his position — that, until the 
Supreme Court should decide upon the constitutionality of 
these laws, the government was bound to carry them out 
in spirit and in letter to the utmost of its ability. 

But although he refrained as much as possible from par- 
ticipation in the political duties often expected from a 
cabinet minister, he was earnest and energetic, from the 
start, in the performance of all functions pertaining legiti- 
mately to his office as Secretary of War. There were 
many abuses which had crept into the administration of the 
army during the protracted and costly civil war, which only 
an experienced army officer would be likely to recognize, 
and which a civilian might naturally suppose had existed 
as a part of the unwritten constitution of the service. 
These, and all other mismanagements, whether proceeding 
from neglect or downright misdoing on the part of subor- 
dinates or outsiders. Grant immediately set himself to work 
to correct. Retrenchment, as usual, was the first subject 
to attract his attention. 

Finally Congress reassembled, and some check was put 
upon the movements of the President. He was obliged, 



GENERAL OF THE ARMY. 405 

by the tenure-of-office bill, to report to the Senate, within 
twenty days after its meeting, the reasons for which he had 
suspended the Secretary of War. This he did, and the 
Senate, on the 13th of January, decided that the reasons 
were insufficient. By the express language of the law, the 
moment that the Senate decided this, Mr. Stanton was re- 
instated in his office. It had become evident, several days 
before, that the Senate would come to this determination, 
and, as soon as Grant was convinced of this, on the nth 
of January, two days prior to the action of the Senate, he 
notified the President that he could not, without violadon 
of the law, and subjecting himself to the penakies of fine 
and imprisonment, refuse to vacate the office of Secretary 
of War the moment Mr, Stanton was reinstated by the 
Senate. 

He made this known to the President in person, as he 
had previously promised to do, in case he came to such a 
conclusion. The President, however, disputed Grant's 
views, and strove to induce him to change his intention. 
A long and earnest conversation ensued, each maintaining 
his ovvn opinions vigorously ; finally, it became late, and the 
President said he would see Grant again, to which Grant 
made no reply. 

The next day was Sunday, and Lieutenant-General Sher- 
man being in town, Grant sent him to the President to 
urge the nominadon to the Senate of some other person 
as^Secretary of War, so that the Senate might act, and Mr. 
Stanton be relieved, and any unpleasant imbroglio avoided. 
The person proposed by Grant was ex-Governor Cox, of 
Ohio, who had been a major-general of volunteers during 
the war, and afterwards elected Governor of Ohio by the 
Republican vote, but who w^as now out of office. His. 
position in polidcs was not so radical as that of many of 
the President's opponents, and Grant hoped, if the Presi- 
dent could be induced to nominate Cox, that the Senate 
would confirm him, and the difficulty might be bridged 
over. Sherman saw the President, urged this action upon 
him, and told him Grant was in favor of it ; many of the 
President's advisers and friends concurred. Saturday, 



406 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Sunday and Monday passed, and the President did not act. 
On Monday, the 13th of January, the Senate resolved that 
the causes for removing Mr. Stanton were insufficient. 
The President, Stanton and Grant were officiahy notified 
of the fact during the evenlnor. 

On the morning of the 14th, Mr. Stanton took possession 
of the office of Secretary of War, and Grant notified the 
President in writing that he had received notice of the 
action of the Senate, and that his functions as Secretary of 
War ad interi7n ceased from the moment of his receipt of 
the notice. The President sent Grant a message, by the 
bearer of this letter, that he wanted to see him at cabinet 
meeting that day. Grant obeyed the summons, and was 
addressed by the President as Mr. Secretary of War, and 
asked to open his budget. He at once reminded Mr. 
Johnson of the notification he had given him ; whereupon 
the President stated that Grant had promised to hold the 
position of Secretary of War until displaced by the courts, 
or at least to resign, so as to place the President where 
he would have been had Grant never accepted the office. 

The President now gave out to the public press state- 
ments of Grant's course, which directly affected his honor; 
and, after submitting to this for a day or two, the general- 
in-chief addressed the President a letter on the subject, in 
which he complained of the " gross misrepresentations " 
which had been made, and asserted the facts as they have 
been given above. The President, in reply, reiterated cir- 
cumstantially the charge which he had previously made in 
cabinet meeting, and now declared that, in the presence of 
the cabinet, Grant had acknowledged the truth of those 
charges ; and that he, the President, had read the offensive 
newspaper article to four of his cabinet, who testified to the 
accuracy of its statements. 

Grant had no option, when thus assailed, but to defend 
himself Grant's reputation for veracity had never been 
impugned before by his bitterest enemies ; the President 
had been frequently accused of deviation from truth ; and 
the subordinate, repeating all that he had declared, reas- 
serted the correctness of his statement in his former letters. 



GENERAL OF THE ARMY. 4O7 

"anytkin^ in the, President's reply to it to the contrary not- 
zviHisUindiiig!' He then remarked: "And now, Mr. Pres- 
ident, when my honor as a soldier and Integrity as a man , 
havi bsen so violendy assailed, pardon me for saying that' 
I can but regard this whole matter, from the beginning to 
the end, as an attempt to involve me in the resistance of 
law, for which you hesitate to assume the responsibility in 
ordjrs, and thus to destroy my character before the coun- 
try. I am, in a measure, confirmed in this conclusion by 
your recent orders, directing me to disobey orders Irom 
the --Secretary of War — my superior and your subordinate 
— without countermanding his authority to issue the orders 
I am to disobey." '' Mr. President, nothing less than a 
vin licadon of my personal honor and character could have 
induced this correspondence on my part." 

In reply to this, the President wrote another letter, to the 
same effect as his earlier one, and appended to it letters of 
four of his Cabinet ministers. The Secretary of the Navy, 
addressing Mr. Johnson, declared that "The three points 
specified in that letter, giving your recollection of his con- 
versation, are correcdy stated," which amounts simply to a 
statement that the President gave Ids own recollection of the 
conversation correcdy. The Secretary of the Treasury was 
less equivocal, and was not unwilling to put himself on re- 
cord as saying, "Your account of that conversation, sub- 
stantially, in all important pardculars, accords with my 
recollection of it." Neither of these personages,^ however, 
complied with the written request of the President, "to 
state what was said in that conversaUon." The Secretary 
of State only attempted " to give the general effect of^ the 
conversation." His statement is long, but the gist of it is 
contained in the following words, referring to the Presi- 
dent's declaration that Grant had promised to agree to the 
President's Vv/ish : " General Grant did not controvert, nor 
can I say that he admitted the last statements ^ So. Mr. 
Seward was not willing to assert what the President had 
openly and repeatedly proclaimed, that Grant, before the 
Caomet,had admitted the truth of Mr. Johnson's statement. 
Mr. ijeward also suggested the explanadon that Grant, on 



4oS LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Monday, '' did not expect the Senate to decide so promptly 
as to anticipate further explanation between himself and 
the President." The Secretary of the Interior answered in 
detail ; but his statement in every important particular 
corroborated Grant. He said that Grant had declared in 
Cabinet meetino^ that "he came over on Saturday to inform 
the President of the change in his views, and did so inform 
him, and they continued to discuss the matter some time, 
and finally he left without any conclusion having been 
reached, expecting to see the President again on Monday." 
The Postmaster-General, however, unhesitatingly and in 
detail affirmed all that was important in the President's 
letter, in direct contradiction of General Grant, Mr. Seward 
and Mr. Browning. 

The result was now before the country. An honest 
soldier, noted for truth, impartiality, outspoken frankness, 
was pitted against a nest of wily polidcians, against whom 
charges of untruthfulness had often been made before. 
The verdict was soon passed. Not a man in the land in 
his heart believed that Grant had deceived the President, 
and no one ventured to assert it except pardsan maligners. 

Having failed in his endeavor to use Grant in order to 
keep Mr. Stanton out of office, the President now applied 
to Sherman. A second dme he offered that general the 
position of Secretary of War, which Sherman again per- 
emptorily declined. The President then conferred on Sher- 
man the brevet of General, so as to make him equal in rank 
to Grant, when he might be ordered to supersede the Gen- 
eral of the Army. Sherman was out of Washington when 
his name was sent to the Senate for confirmadon, but he at 
once wrote and telegraphed to Senators that he did not wish 
the brevet, and his own brother opposed it in the Senate ; 
he was accordingly not confirmed. The President then sent 
in the name of General George H. Thomas for the same 
brevet, but that officer also peremptorily declined to be 
placed in antagonism with his chief or on the side of the 
President. He telegraphed prompdy, declining the brevet, 
declaring diat, under the circumstances, it was no compn- 
ment ; thus diis attempt also fell to the ground. 



h 



GENERAL OF THE ARMY. 4O9 

And now came the most open and important step of the 
President. In direct opposition to the law forbidding such 
an act, he removed Mr. Stanton from the position of Secre- 
tary of War. The Senate passed a resolution, by more 
than a two thirds vote, declaring that Mr. Stanton was still 
Secretary. The House of Representatives immediately 
impeached the President for the act, and he was tried before 
the bar of the Senate, — the only President who had ever 
been summoned to this high court to answer for his acts. 
A large majority of the Senate found him guilty, but the 
Constitution required that two-thirds should so pronounce 
him before he could be degraded from his office, and there 
lacked one vote of this requisite two-thirds ; so the Presi- 
dent remained in office. 

Before the trial was completed, the representatives of the 
National Union Republican party met at Chicago, in con- 
vention, and the six hundred and fifty-two delegates, on the 
first ballot, unanimously nominated Ulysses S. Grant as 
their candidate for President. There had been no doubt 
for months that he would be the choice of the party, but 
this extraordinary unanimity was unparalleled in the politi- 
cal history of the country. The next night, an immense 
concourse of people assembled at his house, the overflow 
filling up the streets for a large distance outside, to con- 
gratulate him on his nomination. Governor Boutwell, of 
Massachusetts, was spokesman for the assemblage, and to 
him Grant replied in his first political speech : 

''Gentlemen: Being entirely unaccustomed to public speaking, and 
without the desire to cultivate that power, it is h-npossible for me to find 
appropriate language to thank you for this demonstration. All that I can 
say is, that to whatever position I may be called by your will, I shall 
endeavor to discharge its duties with fidelity and honesty of purpose. 
Of my rectitude in the performance of public duties, you will have to 
judge for yourselves by the record before you." 

A convention of soldiers and sailors had met at Chicago, 
at the same time with the Republican convention, and the 
former also, with great unanimity, recommended Grant for 
the Presidency. On the 29th of May, a committee from 
this Soldiers and Sailors' Convention presented him a 
formal address, to which Grant replied as follows : 




%.,.^>< 



(410) 



I 



GENERAL OF THE ARMY. 4I I 

*' Genilemen of the Committee of Soldiers and Sailors : 
'' 1 will say that it was never a desire of mine to be a candidate for 
any political office. It is a source of gratification to me to fed that I 
have the supi)ort of those who sustained me in the great rebellion through 
which we have passed, /f I did not feel I had the support of those, 2 
would have never consented to be a candidate. It was not a matter of 
clioice witii me; but I hope, as I have accepted, that I will have your aid 
and support, from noiv until November^ as I had it during the rebellion^' 

There is little doubt that this appeal of their old chief to 
the Union soldiers of the country will be answered as 
warmly at the polls as it ever was in the field. 

The same evening (irant was formally notified, by Gen- 
eral J. R. Hawley, the President of the Republican Conven- 
tion, of his nomination as President of the United States. 
He replied in these words : 

^' Mr. President a?id Gentlemen of the National Union Convention: 

*' I will endeavor, in a very short time, to write you a letter accepting 
the trust you have imposed upon me. Expressing my gratitude for the 
confidence you have placed in me, I will now say but little orally, and 
that is to thank you for the unanimity with which you have selected me 
as a candidate for the Presidential office. I can say, in addition, I looked 
on, during the progress of the proceedings at Chicago, with a great deal 
of interest, and am gratified with the harmony and unanimity which 
seem to have governed the deliberations of the convention. 

"■ If chosen to fill the high offi; e for which ) ou have selected me, / 
will give to Its duties the same energy, the same spirit, and the same will 
that f have given to the performance of all duties winch have devolved upon 
me heretofore. Whether I shall be able to perform those duties to your 
entire satisfaction, time will determine. You have truly siid, in the 
course of your address, thit / shall have no policy of my own to enforce 
against the will of the people.'' 

Some of the General's most intimate friends advised him 
not to accept the nomination, urging his inexperience in 
civil affairs. To all such he replied : 

*^ All you say to me is plain. I am aware of the difficulties awaiting 
any man who takes that position with its present complications. I have 
no ambition for the place. My profession is suited to my tastes and habits. 
I have arrived at its height, and been honored with a position to continue 
for life, with a generous compensation, and satisfactory to the highest 
aspirations of a soldier. It will be the greatest sacrifice of my life to give 
this up to the turmoil of the Presidential office. 

"But if the people ask it, I must yield. For some years the people of 
America have trusted their sons and brothers and fathers to me, and every 
step taken with them, in the period from Belmont to Appomattox, has 
been tracked in the best blood of the country. 



412 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

*' If now they need me to finish the work, I must accept the duty if in 
doing so, I lay down the realizations of my most ambitious hopes." 

General Grant's letter of acceptance of the nomination 
was in these words : .-Washington, D. C„ May 29, .868. 

** To General Joseph R. Hawley, 

President of the National Union Republican Co nv edition : 

''In formally accepting the nomination of the National Union Repub- 
lican Convention of the 21st instant, it seems proper that some state- 
ment of views, beyond the mere acceptance of the nomination, should 
be expressed. The proceedings of the convention were marked with wis- 
dom, moderation and patriotism, and, I believe, express the feelings of 
the great mass of those who sustained the country through its recent trials. 
I endorse their resolutions. If elected to the office of President of the 
United States, // will be my endeavor to administer all the laws in good 
FAITH, with economy, and with the view of giving peace, quiet and protec- 
tion everywhere. In times like the present it is impossible, or at least 
eminently improper, to lay down a policy to be adhered to, right or 
wrong, through an administration of four years. New political issues, 
not foreseen, are constantly arising ; the views of the public on old ones 
are constantly changing, and a purely administrative officer should always 
be left free to execute the will of the people. 1 have always respected 
that will, and always shall. Peace, and universal prosperity, its sequence, 
with economy of administration, will lighten the burden of taxation, 
while it constantly reduces the national debt. Let us have peace. 

*' With great respect, your obedient servant, U. S. Grant." 

The Democrats held their General Convention in the city 
of New York, on the 4th of July, and nominated Horatio 
Seymour, of New York, for the Presidency^ and General 
Francis P. Blair, of Missouri, for the Vice-Presidency. 
General Blair had taken a most active and prominent part 
in the war on the Union side. The result of the election 
was the choice of Grant and Colfax by the Electoral 
Colleges ; they received 2 1 7 of the electoral votes, while 
Seymour and Blair received but "jj. 

The States voting for Grant and Colfax were Alabama, 
Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, 
Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mis- 
souri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, 
South Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennes- 
see, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin — 25. The States 
voting for Seymour and Blair were Delaware, Georgia, 
Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and 
Oregon — 8. 

X 



GENERAL OF THE ARMY. 413 

Of the popular vote cast Grant and Colfax received 
2,985,031, and Seymour and Blair received 2,648,830. 

Some events of Mr. Johnson's administration deserve 
special notice. One of these is the admission of the people 
of Nebraska as a separate State in the Union. This took 
place on the ist of March, 1867, the whole number of 
States now constitudng the Union being thereby swelled to 
the number of thirty-seven, and all, according to the Con- 
stitution, and according to the terms of their admission, 
being '' upon an equal footing with the original thirteen." 
During the summer of the same year the territory of 
Alaska, containing 500,000 square miles, was acquired by 
purchase from Russia, at the price of $7,200,000 in coin. 
A treaty was also made with Denmark during Mr. Johnson's 
administradon, for the islands of St. Thomas and St. John, 
but was not ratified by the Senate. It may be further 
noted that it was during his administration that ex-President 
Buchanan died, at Wheatland, on the ist of June, 1868, in 
the 78th year of his age. And it should also be noted that 
just before the expiradon of his term of ofhce, Congress 
proposed a new amendment to the Constitution of the 
United States, known as the Fifteenth, to the States for 
their ratification. 

At the expiration of his term of office President Johnson 
retired to his home in Greenville, Tennessee, where he 
continued to reside until he was again called to the United 
States Senate. 



CHAPTER XI. 

PRESIDENT ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

General Grant inaugurated, and the Forty-first Congress assembled on the 4th of March— 
The Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution ratified— The Civil Rights Bill passed— 
Completion of the Pacific Railroad— Black Friday at New York— Virginia, Missis- 
sippi and Texas re-admitted into the Union— Death of ex-Secretary of War Edwin 
Stanton— Reconstruction in Georgia — Repeal of the Income Tax — The Geneva 
Conference— Carpet-bag rule in South Carolina and Louisiana — Suspension of the 
writ of habeas corpus— Gxf\X. conflagration at Chicago— Property to the value oi 
^200,000,000 destroyed and 100,000 persons rendered homeless— The Modoc War— 
Death of Lincoln's Secretary of State, Seward, and General George G. Meade— 
Removing the political disabilities of certain classes of former Confederates— Certain 
exceptions— Horace Greeley nominated for the Presidency by the Democrats and 
Independent Republicans, and Ulysses S. Grant re-nominated by the Republican 
Convention, at Philadelphia— Grant re-elected— Death of Greeley— Great fire at 
Boston— The Credit Mobilier and Salary-Grab Swindles— The trouble in Louisiana. 

For the purpose of having no interregnum in the legisla- 
tive department of the Government during the process of 
the reconstruction measures, an act was passed by the 
Fortieth Congress at its last session providing that the 
Forty-first Congress should assemble on the 4th day of 
March, 1869, immediately after the final adjournment of 
the former Congress, instead of December of that year. 
On the day fixed the new Congress was organized just 
after the old one had retired from the halls and at the 
time of inauguration of the President-elect, U. S. Grant. 

General Grant's old friend, Ellhu Washburne, was at first 
made Secretary of State, but later resigned and was made 
Minister to France. Alexander T. Stewart, of New York, 
was nominated for the Treasury, but was discovered to be 
disqualified by the act of 1 789, which provided that no 
incumbent of the office should be "direcdy or indirecdy 
concerned or interested in carrying on the business of trade 
or commerce," and George S. Boutwell, of Massachusetts, 
was appointed in his stead. The other nominadons were: 
Jacob D. Cox, of Ohio, Secretary of the Interior; Adolph 
E. Bone, of Pennsylvania, Secretary of the Navy; John M. 

(4U) 



k 



PRESIDENT ULYSSES S. GRANT. 415 

Schofield, of Illinois, Secretary of War; John A. Cress- 
well, of Maryland, Postmaster-General ; and E. Rockwood 
Hoar, of Massachusetts, Attorney-General. 

General Grant accepted the office of President at the 
hands of the people as he had accepted promotions in the 
line of duty heretofore, determined to do his best, under 
all circumstances, according to his judgment. It had been 
charged against him that he was not a statesman, but his 
administration proved an able one, although the peace that 
reigned did not permit of its being as conspicuous as 
though troubles were crowding thick and fast. 

Under his wise policy the work of reconstruction went 
on more successfully perhaps than it could have done in 
any other hands, unless indeed we except those of that 
grand man who is cherished in the hearts of the people as 
the " Martyr President." 

In a message to Congress on the subject of public edu- 
cation, President Grant wrote : 

"The * Father of his Country' in his farewell address, uses the lan- 
guage, 'Promote, then, as a matter of primary importance, institutions 
for the general diffusion of knowledge.' The adoption of the Fifteenth 
Amendment to the Constitution completes the greatest civil change, and 
constitutes the most important event that has ever occurred since the 
nation came into life. The change will be beneficial in proportion to 
the heed that is given to the urgent recommendations of Washington. 
If these recommendations were important then, with a population of but 
a few millions, how much more important now ! 

*'I therefore call upon Congress to take all the means within their con- 
stitutional powers to promote and encourage popular education through 
the country; and upon the people everywhere to see to it, that all who 
possess and exercise political rights shall have the opportunity to acquire 
the knowledge which will make their share in government a blessing and 
not a danger. By such means only can the benefits contemplated by 
this amendment to the Constitution be secured." 

The pernicious system of political assessments, which 
reached its climax in the celebrated circular to the depart- 
ments, issued by the notorious Jay S. Hubbell during the 
Garfield campaign, had already come into life, when Grant 
was called to the chief magistracy. His views on this 
important question are worth quoting, if only to show the 
manly stand he took. He says : 

"The utmost fidelity and diligence will be expected of all officers in 



^l6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

every branch of the public service. Political assessments, as they are 
called, have been forbidden within the various departments; and while 
the right of all persons in official positions to take part in politics is 
acknowledged, and the elective franchise is recognized as a high trust to 
be discharged by all entitled to its exercise, whether in the employment 
of the government or in private life, honesty and efficiency, not political 
activity, will determine the tenure of office." 

These noble words ought to be written in letters of gold, 
and hung up in the bureau of every office-holder through- 
out the land. 

Grant never sought a nomination to the Presidency; it 
was literally forced upon him. Speaking of this in after 
years, he said that the position of General of the Army, 
which Congress had expressly created for him, was the one 
he liked. He would have retained it until such time as 
Congress might have consented to his retirement, with the 
rank and pay of a general. He would then have gone to a 
home, where the balance of his days might be spent in 
peace and in the enjoyment of domestic quiet, relieved 
from the cares which had oppressed him for fourteen years. 
But he was made to believe that the public good called 
upon him to make the sacrifice. 

The first session of the Forty-first Congress adjourned on 
the 8th of April, 1869, after passing a bill to secure the public 
credit and the Civil Rights Bill for the District of Columbia. 
The most notable event of this spring was the comple- 
tion of the Pacific Railroad by a junction between the 
eastern division, known as the Union Pacific Railroad, from 
Omaha, Nebraska, and the western division, knov/n as the 
Central Pacific. These two roads unite at Ogden, near 
Salt Lake City, in Utah Territory. The junction was 
accomplished on the loth of May, 1869, and trains there- 
after ran from San Francisco to Omaha. The distance 
from Omaha to Ogden is 1,032 miles, while the distance 
from Ogden to San Francisco is 882 miles — commion line, 
1,914 miles — and constituting by far the most important 
railroad yet completed in the world. 

On the 24th of December, 1869, Edwin Stanton, former 
Secretary of War, died, after being elevated to the Supreme 
Court bench. 



PRESIDENT ULYSSES S. GRANT. 417 

During the fall of this year also occurred a panic in the 
o-old market in New York City, which was occasioned by 
one of the most remarkable conspiracies by money-holders 
against the interests of the people ever known. It ended 
in what is known as the catastrophe of Black Friday, which 
occurred on the 24th of September, 1869, and in which 
thousands of fortunes were wrecked. 

The second session of the Forty-first Congress convened 
in December of this year as usual. 

Early in January, 1870, Virginia, Mississippi and Texas 
were reHeved from military rule, and readmitted into the 
Union upon their adoption of the Fifteenth Amendment of 
the Constitudon of the United States. Texas was the last. 
From that time they were again permitted to have repre- 
sentation in the Senate and House. 

Georgia had in like manner been relieved from military 
rule and readmitted in 1868, upon her adoption of the 
Fourteenth Amendment, which was at that time the con- 
dition precedent for her readmission, and her Senators and 
members to Congress, whose disabilides had been removed 
under the provisions of the Fourteenth Amendment, were 
thereafter permitted to take their seats. 

President Grant, on the 20th of March, 1870, issued a 
proclamation announcing that the Fifteenth Amendment 
had been duly ratified by a sufficient num.ber of States, 
and therefore declarc-d it to be part of the Constitution of 
the United States. Congress soon after went eagerly to 
work upon a measure to secure the enforcement of rights 
which they held to be conferred by it. This, bill passed 
on the 3d of May, and was known as the Enforcement Act. 

In February of this year the first resolutions were 
adopted for the establishment of the Signal Service Bureau, 
for weather reports. From small beginnings then, it has 
become one of the largest, most important, and useful 
branches of the government. Its first chief, Albert J. 
Myers, who brought it to such perfection, died July, 1880. 
It is estimated that property to the extent of twenty 
millions of dollars in shipping and merchandise was saved 
annually, for several years before his death, by his system 
27 




Ili|.i,.i;i.' '\l;H, 



(418) 



''''''■i'i||.6llr>'' '" ''\;!|ii§i?''^ 



PRESIDENT ULYSSES S. GRANT. 419 

of Storm signals. General Myers was succeeded by- 
General William B. Hazen, who still holds the position. 

The members of the General Assembly and members of 
Congress were to be chosen this year, under the State 
constitution of 1868, and in accordance with an act passed 
by the Legislature chosen under that constitution. The 
canvass opened early, and was conducted with a gre^t 
deal of spirit and energy, both through the press and by 
speeches on the hustings. The election, according to law, 
was to come off in the latter part of December, and was 
to continue for four days, with a detachment of military 
to attend the voting precincts, wherever they might be 
required. 

The result of the four days' December election in Georgia, 
with the military guard at the polls, under the provisions of 
the Enforcement act, was an overwhelming majority of the 
Democratic party, and the redemption of the State from 
carpet-bag rule. Governor Bullock, who had been declared 
elected chief magistrate of the State in 1868, under the Re- 
construction act of Congress, raised great complaints 
against the elections. He charged fraud at the polls in 
many parts of the State, notwithstanding the military were 
present in force. He alleged that there had been gross 
outrages, and divers violations of the Enforcement act. 
A part of the State, particularly the Eighth Congressional 
District, he declared to be in a state of rebellion. 

A committee of the partisans of the governor were 
deputed to visit Washington with a view of getting Presi- 
dent Grant and ConQ;ress to make another turn of the recon- 
struction screw upon Georgia. The committee waited upon 
the President. He received them, and heard patiently all 
they had to say, to which he replied: "Gentlemen, the 
people of Georgia may govern themselves as they 
please, without any interference on my part, so long as they 
violate no Federal law." 

In the latter part of the last session of the Fortieth Con- 
gress two important measures were passed. One was the 
repeal of the income tax, which was very oppressive and 
offensive in its enforcements. This passed on the 26th of 



420 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



January, 1871. The other act referred to was the repeal 
of the test oath, or iron-clad oath, as it was called, so far as 
relates to the holding of Federal office by persons con- 
nected with the Confederate cause. This act passed on 
the 31st of January, 1871. 

The Forty-second Congress convened in its first session 
on the 4th of March, 1871, the first day of its term, as its 
'predecessor, the Forty-first, had done. It was, as the one 
before, largely Radical in its composition, though nothing 
of great importance was done at this session. 

President Grant, soon after entering upon his adminis- 
tration, gave special attention to the damage done the 
United States commerce by Confederate cruisers fitted out 
in British ports, in violation of the laws of nations. He 
brought the subject to the notice of the British ministry, 
and urged an amicable adjustment of the question. It was 
finally agreed between the two countries to establish a 
Board of Commissioners, to determine upon all matters of 
dispute in the premises. This board met at Geneva, Switz- 
erland, on the 15th day of December, 1871, andafterapro- 
tracted investigation and discussion of the principles in 
volved, awarded the United States the sum of Ji 5,000,000, 
the amount of damages for which England was justly liable. 

Another important measure was that known as the Ku- 
Klux Bill, designed to correct certain abuses in the South 
in connection with the ballot, and in the course of which 
trouble the right of habeas coi^pus was for a season sus- 
pended in the northern counties of South Carolina. 

On the 20th of June, 18 71, Mr. Hoar resigned his posi- 
tion as Attorney-General, and was succeeded by Amos T. 
Ackerman, of Georgia, who held his office only until the 
13th of the ensuing December, when he resigned and was 
succeeded by George H. Williams, of Oregon. Mr. Cox, 
of Ohio, also resigned the Interior Department, and was 
succeeded by Columbus Delano, of the same State. 

One of the greatest conflagrations ever known in the 
United States occurred during this year. It was the burn- 
ing of the city of Chicago, Illinois, on the 8th and 9th of 
October, 1871. The loss was estimated at nearly $200,- 



PRESIDENT ULYSSES S. GRANT. 42 1 

000,000 in property. Upwards of 17,000 houses were 
burned, and nearly 100,000 persons rendered homeless. 
The saddest part, however, was the loss of 280 human lives. 
The second session of the Forty-second Congress con- 
vened in December of 1871 as usual. The most of its time 
was taken up with the usual discussions preceding- an ap- 
proaching Presidential election. One act, however, of this 
session deserves special notice. It was the act, passed the 
9th day of May, removing the disabilities of certain classes 
of Southern men as provided for in the Fourteenth Amend- 
ment of the Constitution. By this act at least 150,000 
citizens of the Southern States were no longer prohibited 
from holding office. Those excepted from the provisions 
of this act were all the Senators and members of Congress 
who had vacated their seats on the secession of the several 
States ; all United States ministers abroad who had, in like 
manner, resigned their positions ; and all graduates of West 
Point and Annapolis who had adopted a simUar course. 

The Modoc Indians, who had been placed on a reserva- 
tion in California, left it, and began depredations on the 
frontier settlements. Open war broke out in 1872. 
Several members of the Peace Commission, appointed by 
Phesident Grant, In 1869, to treat with Indians, met the 
Modocs, and General Canby and Dr. Thomas were treach- 
erously murdered. 

The war was thereafter prosecuted with vigor, and the 
Indians retired to some nearly inaccessible fastnesses 
among the lava beds of that region. From these they 
were at last driven, and Captain Jack, their leader, was 
captured. Hc and three of his companions were hanged 
October. L^.y-j. 

The Sioux Indians occupied a reservation among the 
Black Hills, in the territories of Dakota and Wyoming. 
Gold was discovered within the limits of the reservation, 
and a bill was passed by Congress taking away that portion 
of it lying in Dakota. 

The Sioux organized for war, and United States troops 
were sent against them. General George A. Custer, in 
command of a portion of these, pushed across the country 



422 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



from Missouri to. the Yellowstone. Pressing forward, re- 
gardless of danger, he was met by an overwhelming force 
of Sioux under Sitting Bull, and he, with two hundred and 
sixty-one men, nearly his entire force, were killed, June 25, 
1876. The Indians afterward retired into the British pos- 
sessions, where they were safe from the pursuit of the 
United States troops. 

On the 2 1 St of October was finally settled the last ques- 
tion of boundary between the United States and Great 
Britain. It related to the true channel between the United 
States and Vancouver's Island. The matter had been re- 
ferred to William, Emperor of Germany. He decided in 
favor of the United States. 

William H. Seward, Mr. Lincoln's great Secretary of 
State, after making a successful voyage around the world, 
died on the loth of October, 1872, in the seventy-second 
year of his age. General George G. Meade, the victor at 
Gettysburg, died 6th of November, 1872, in the fifty-seventh 
year of his age. 

During the fall of this year another exciting Presidential 
election took place, whereof an account will now be given. 

Quite a split had taken place in the Republican party. 
A large portion of that organization had manifested decided 
opposition to the renomination and re-election of President 
Grant. They assumed the name of Liberal Republicans 
and held their convention at Cincinnati, Ohio, and put in 
nomination for the Presidency Horace Greeley, the great 
journalist of New York ; and for the Vice-Presidency, B. 
Gratz Brown, of Missouri. The Democrats held their con- 
vention at Baltimore, on the 9th day of July, and, without 
presenting a ticket of their own, simply indorsed the nomi- 
nation made by the Cincinnati Convention , while the re- 
gular Republican Convention met on the 5th day of June, 
at Philadelphia, and put in nomination for re-election Gen- 
eral Ulysses S. Grant, of Illinois, for President, and for 
Vice-President, Henry Wilson, of Massachusetts. The re- 
sult of the election was 286 electoral votes for Grant, and 
286 for Wilson, for Vice-President. For B. Gratz Brown, 
for Vice-President, 47. 



PRESIDENT ULYSSES S. GRANT. 423 

Mr. Greeley, having died soon after the popular election 
in November, and before the meeting of the Electoral Col- 
leges in December, the votes that he carried at the popular 
election were only 65, and were scattered in the colleges 
among a number of persons whose names had never been 
connected with the office. 

Another great calamity should also here be chronicled. 
It is the great fire that occurred in Boston on the 9th and 
loth of November, 1872. The loss of property was esti- 
mated at ^80,000,000, and fifteen persons were consumed in 
the flames. 

During the remaining portion of the last session of the 
Forty-second Congress several important measures were 
passed. The one which, perhaps, produced the greatest 
effects upon the country was the act demonetizing silver, 
and striking this precious metal from the list of coins with 
debt-paying power. ' The two metals, from time immemo- 
rial, which had been recognized by civilized nations as 
mone}^, were silver and gold. At the time silver was dis- 
placed on the list there were, upon the best estimates, in 
round numbers, $8,000,000,000 of gold and silver circulat- 
ing as money in the world. Of this amount, $4,500,000,000 
was silver. The only unit of value in the United States 
from the beginning of the government was the silver dollar, 
which had never been changed. All the bonds that had 
been issued by the United States had been made payable 
in United States coin, either gold or silver, at its then stan- 
dard value. Another subject that greatly agitated the 
Congress and the country about the time was the Credit 
Mobilier, about which so much was said and written. It 
was at this session also that the celebrated Salary Grab Act, 
as it was called, was passed. 

Soon after the November elections of 1S72 very great 
excitement took place in Louisiana. The grossest frauds 
were charged upon Governor Warmouth, in his attempts 
at manipulating the returning board, under the laws of that 
State. The result was two returning boards, each claiming 
to be the riofhtful one. Owine to this confusion, two lems- 
lative bodies set up to be each the rightful one. Each one 



424 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

of these elected a Senator, claiming to be the rightful one, 
to the United States Senate. And there were two rival 
contestants to the Governorship of the State. The Senate 
raised a commission, who went down to Louisiana and 
made a thorough examination, and reported upon the facts, 
which amounted, in a printed volume, to over a thousand 
pages. Louisiana sent, in the latter part of December, a 
large deputation of citizens, headed by ex-Justice of the 
Supreme Court John A. Campbell, to urge President Grant 
to afford them some relief and especially to send Justice 
Bradley, United States Circuit Judge, to Louisiana, and set 
things right there. They waited upon the President on the 
19th of December. The committee, having been intro- 
duced to the President by Attorney-General Williams, 
Judge Campbell explained the purpose of their coming to 
Washington, and gave a brief account of the condition of 
affairs In Louisiana, In consequence of which commerce 
was seriously affected, and trade generally so injured that 
the people were dismayed, and this unfavorable condition 
of affairs had not only Injured that State, but other States 
havinor close business relations with Louisiana. 

As there was no prospect of a satisfactory solution of the 
present trouble, by means of the agency now at work, the 
people, through their committee, asked that. In this exi- 
gency. Associate Justice Bradley, of the Supreme Court of 
the United States, and Judge Woods, of the Circuit Court 
of the United States, should take charge of the judicial 
administration of the Circuit Court, sitting In New Orleans. 

Judge Campbell said that when he occupied a seat on 
the bench of the Supreme Court of the United States, he 
was twice requested by the chief magistrate to perform 
such duty In order that the force, power and Influence of 
the court should be felt and respected, and he also went 
there twice at his own Instance. 

He did not know of a more serious condition of affairs than 
that which now existed in Louisiana, and could see no relief 
except In the manner now suggested. The judges, whom 
he mentioned, would have greater power and Independence 
than the judge who now presided in the Circuit Court. 



m- 



PRESIDENT ULYSSES S. GRANT. 425 

The course he had indicated promised a solution of the 
difficulties so far as the judicial question was concerned. 
In the second place, President Grant, living twelve hundred 
miles distant from New Orleans, could not be expected to 
have a knowledge of all the facts. What the people of 
Louisiana wanted, what the President wanted, and what all 
good men desired was the right of this matter about which 
there were conflictinor statements and criminating remarks. 

The people of that State, as represented by the com- 
mittee, also ask the executive of the United States to send 
to New Orleans three independent, impartial, learned and 
just men to make a full inquiry into all the facts, to take 
testimony and thoroughly explore the situation. They 
desire that all the facts be reported to the President. 

President Grant, in reply, said he supposed it was com- 
petent for the Supreme Court to designate any one of its. 
members to proceed to Louisiana, but he did not think it 
would be quite proper for him to make the request of 
them. Congress had power to investigate the facts in the 
case presented, but he did not propose to interfere with 
the local affairs in that State by putting one set of officers 
or another in power, although numerous telegrams, letters, 
and papers say he had done so. 

He would not feel at liberty to make a request that Judge 
Bradley go to New Orleans, particularly as he is wanted here 
while the court is in session ; although if the court should 
make the request, it would meet with his approbation. 

Judge Campbell said there was no authority under the 
Constitution and laws of the United States for a Federal 
Court to interfere with the affairs of a State, such as had 
taken place In Louisiana, and he briefly alluded to the 
decree of the court and its effects In seating and unseating 
persons elected to office. 

President Grant, during a colloquy with Judge Campbell, 
said his understanding of the subject was, the court had 
merely decided who were the legal canvassers, and, even it, 
as stated In this case, the court exceed its authority, its 
decision will have to be respected until the decision shall 
be set aside by a superior court. 



^2 6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

It would be dangerous for the President to set the pre- 
cedent of interfering with the decisions of courts. 

In reply to the request of Judge Campbell that he would 
send a committee of three honest men to go down and 
investigate the matter, and send a report to Congress, he 
said he could not employ and compensate such men unless 
by authority of Congress, nor could such committee admin- 
ister oaths or compel the attendance of witnesses. He said 
Congress had power — he hadn't. 

Subsequendy to this, as Congress had taken no action 
on the subject, President Grant, on the 25th of February, 
sent a message to Congress upon the subject, in the follow- 
ing words : 

* ' To the Seriate and House of Representatives : 
'' Your attention is respectfully invited to the condition of affairs in 
the State of Louisiana. Grave complications have grown out of the 
election there on the 6th of November last, chiefly attributable, it is 
believed, to an organized attempt, on the part of those controlling the 
election of officers and returns, to defeat in that election the will of a 
majority of the electors of the State. Different persons are claiming the 
executive office. Two bodies claim to be the legislative assembly of the 
State, and the confusion and uncertainty produced in this way fall with 
paralyzing effect on all its interests. A controversy arose, as soon as the 
election occurred, over its proceedings and results, but I declined to 
interfere until suit involving this controversy to some extent was to be 
brought in the Circuit Court of the United States, under and by virtue 
of the act of May 3d, 1870, entitled, 'an act to enforce the right of 
citizens of the United States to vote in the several States of the Union, 
and for other purposes.' Finding resistance was made to the judicial 
process in that suit without any opportunity, and in my judgment without 
any right to review the judgment of the court upon the jurisdictional or 
other questions arising in the case, I directed the United States Marshal 
to enforce such process, and to use, if necessary, troops for that purpose 
in accordance with the thirteenth section of that act, which provides that 
it shall be lawful for the President of the United States to employ such 
part of the land and naval forces of the United States, or of the militia, 
as shall be necessary to aid in the execution of judicial process under 
this act. 

" Two bodies of persons claimed to be the returning board for the 
State, and the Circuit Court in that case decided the one to which Lynch 
belonged, usually designated by his name, was the lawful returning board, 
and this decision has been repeatedly affirmed by the District and Su- 
preme Courts of the State. Having no opportunity or power to canvass 
the votes, and the exigencies of the case demanding an immediate de- 
cision, I conceived it to be my duty to recognize those persons as elected 



PRESIDENT ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



7^7 
427 



who received and "held their credentials to office from what then appeared 
to me to be, and has since been decided by the Supreme Court of the 
State to be, the legal returning board. Conformably to the decisions of 
this board, a full set of State officers has been installed and a legislative 
assembly organized, constituting, if not a de jure, at least a de facto gov- 
ernment, which, since some time in December last, has had possession of 




PRESIDENT GRANT LEAVING THE WHITE HOUSE TO BE INAUGURATED. 

the offices and been exercising the usual powers of the government ; but 
opposed to this has been another government claiming to control the af- 
fairs of the State, and which has, to some extent, httn pro forma or- 
ganized. 

" Recent investigation of the said election has developed so many 
frauds and forgeries as to make it doubtful what candidates received a 



428 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

majority of votes actually cast, and in view of these facts, a variety of 
action has been proposed. I have no specific recommendation to make 
upon the subject, but if there is any practical way of removing these dif- 
ficulties by legislation, then I earnestly request that such action be taken 
at the present session of Congress. It seems advisable that I should state 
now what course I shall feel bound to pursue in reference to the matter, 
in the event of no action by Congress at this time, subject to any satis- 
factory arrangement that may be made by the parties to the contest, 
which, of all things is the mo^c desirable. It will bi my duty, so far as 
it may be necessary for me to act, to adhere to that government recog- 
nized by me. To judge of the election and qualifications of its members 
is the exclus ve province of the Senate, a^ it is also the exclusive province 
of the House to judge of the election and qualifications of its members ', 
but as to the State offices filled and held under State laws, the decision 
of the State judicial tribunal, it seems to me, ought to be respected. I 
am extremely anxious to avoid any appearance of undue interference in 
State affairs, and if Congress differ from me as to what ought to be done, 
I respectfully urge its immediate decision to that effect. Otherwise I shall 
feel obliged, as far as I can, by the exercise of legitimate authority, to put an 
end to the unhappy controversy which disturbs the peace and prostrates 
the business of Louisiana, by the recognition and support of that govern- 
ment which is recognized and upheld by the courts of the State. 

-U. S. Grant." 

Conoress took no notice of this messaoe and left the state 
of affairs in Louisiana without any action. 

On the 4th of March, 1873, General Grant was inaugu- 
rated for another four years. The ceremonies were very 
imposing, and the crowd immense. The inaugural was de- 
livered from the usual place, the east portico of the capitol. 
Like the first, it was brief and pointed ; and though read 
was received with great enthusiasm, notwithstanding the 
severe inclemency of the weather. 

The oath of office was administered by Chief Justice 
Chase. 



CHAPTER XII. 

Second inauguration of President Grant — Kellogg recognized as the Governor of Louisiana 
— Death of Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase — His successor Morrison R. Waite, of Ohio 
. — Pohtical disturbances at New Orleans — Monetary panic in 1873 — Death of Charles 
Sumner and Vice-President Henry Wilson — Colorado the Centennial State — The 
Forty-fourth Congress largely Democratic — Michael Kerr, of Indiana, and, later on, 
Samuel J. Randall, of Pennsylvania, elected Speaker — Opening of the Centennial 
Exposition at Philadelphia — The looth birthday of the Republic celebrated at 
Philadelphia — R. B. Hayes and Samuel J. Tilden nominated for the Presidency. 

On the failure of the Forty-second Congress, before its 
adjournment, to take any action upon the state of affairs in 
Louisiana, Grant, after his second inauguration, recognized 
Kellooror as the Governor of the State in accordance with 
what he announced he would do in his message to Con- 
gress of the 25th of February. In this he acted in con- 
formity to the decision of the highest judicial tribunal in the 
State. 

Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase suddenly died of paralysis 
on the 7th of May, 1873, at the home of his daughter, in the 
city of New York, and was succeeded some months after- 
wards by the nomination and confirmation of Morrison R. 
Waite, of Ohio. 

In the fall of 1873 a severe commercial crisis, known as 
the " Railroad Panic," burst upon the country. It was 
caused by excessive speculation in railway stocks and the 
reckless construction of railways in portions of the country 
where they were not yet needed and which could not sup- 
port them. The excitement began on the 17th of Sep- 
tember, and on the 18th, 19th and 20th several of the 
principal banking firms of New York and Philadelphia 
suspended payment. The failure of these houses involved 
hundreds of other firms in all parts of the country in their 
ruin. The excitement became so intense that on the 20th 
the New York Stock Exchange closed its doors, and put a 
stop to all sales of stocks in order to prevent a general 
destruction of the values of all securities. The banks 
(430) 



SECOND TERM OF PRESIDENT GRANT. 431 

were obliged to resort to the most stringent measures to- 
avoid being drawn into the common ruin. 

President Grant and the Secretary of the Treasury has- 
tened to New York to consult the capitalists of that city as 
to the proper measures to be taken for the relief of the 
business of the country. Various measures were urged 
upon them. A strong appeal was made to the President 
to lend the whole or the greater part of the treasury reserve 
of forty-four million dollars of greenbacks to thebanks to 
furnish the Wall Street brokers with funds to settle there 
losses and resume business. He at once declined to take 
so grave a step, and, thanks to his firmness, the credit of 
the United States was not placed at the mercy of the reck- 
less men who had caused the trouble. The government, 
as a measure of relief, consented to purchase a number of 
its bonds of a certain class at a fair price, and thus enable 
the holders who were in need of money to obtain It without 
sacrificing their securities. On the 2 2d the excitement 
In New York and the Eastern cities began to subside. 
The trouble was not over, however. The stringency of 
the money market which followed the first excitement 
prevailed for fully a year, and affected all branches of the 
industry of the country, and caused severe suffering from 
loss of employment and lowering of wages to the working 
classes. 

The panic showed the extent to which railroad gambling 
had demoralized the business and the people of the coun- 
try. It showed that some of the strongest and most trusted 
firms In the Union had lent themselves to the task of In- 
ducing people to invest their money in the securides of 
enterprises the success of which was, to say the least, 
doubtful. It showed that the banks, the depositories of the 
people's money, had, to an alarming extent, crippled them- 
selves by neglecting their legitimate business and making 
advances on securities which in the hour of trial proved 
worthless in many cases, uncertain In most. The money 
needed for the use of the legldmate business of the country 
had been placed at the mercy of the railroad gamblers and 
had been used by them. The funds of helpless and de- 



432 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



pendent persons, of widows and orphan children, had been 
used to pay fictitious dividends and advance schemes which 
had been stamped with the disapproval of the public. An 
amount of recklessness and demoralization was revealed 
in the management of the financial interests of the country 
that startled even the most hardened. The lesson was se- 
vere, but it was needed. The panic was followed by a better 
and more healthful state of affairs. The business of the coun- 
try slowly settled down within proper channels. Reckless- 
ness was succeeded by prudence ; extravagance by economy 
in all quarters. The American people took their severe 
lesson to heart, and resolutely set to work to secure the good 
results that came to them from this harvest of misfortune. 

In January, 1875, Congress passed an act providing for 
the resumption of specie payments, and requiring that on 
and after January ist, 1879, the legal tender notes of the 
government shall be redeemed in specie. In the mean time 
silver coin is to be substituted for the fractional paper 
currency. 

Vice-President Henry Wilson, on the 2 2d of November, 

1875, sank under a stroke of paralysis, and died in the Vice- 
President's apartments in the Capitol at Washington. 

On the 4th of March, 1875, the Territory of Colorado 
was authorized by Congress to form a Constitution, and 
was admitted into the Union as a State, the ist of July, 

1876, making the thirty-eighth member of the Confederacy, 
and by which she received the appellation of the " Centen- 
nial State." 

The year 1875 completed the period of one hundred 
years from the opening of the Revolution, and the leading 
events of that period — the centennial anniversaries of the 
batdes of Lexington, Concord and Bunker Hill ; the Meck- 
lenburg Declaradon of Independence in Charlotte, North 
Carolina — were all celebrated with appropriate commemor- 
ative ceremonies. These were but preludes to the great 
Internadonal Centennial of 1876 in celebradon of the Decla- 
ration of Independence on the 4th of July one hundred 
years before. 

The centennial year of American Independence was cele- 



SECOND TERM OF PRESIDENT GRANT. 433 

brated In Philadelphia during the year 1876, with a grand 
international exhibition, which was Inaugurated with Impos- 
ing ceremonies by President Grant, May loth, and con- 
tmued open until November loth, a period of one hundred 
and fifty-nine days. 

Its chief object was to show the progress of the nation in 
arts and manufactures during the first century of its exist- 
ence, but all foreign nadons were Invited to contribute, and 
thirty-three of these exhibited their products. The space 
occupied was seventy-five acres, an area far greater than 
that of any previous exhibition. 

As early as 1872 measures were set on foot for the proper 
observance of the one hundredth anniversary of the Inde- 
pendence of the United States. It was resolved to com- 
memorate the close of the first century of the Republic by 
an International Exhibition, to be held at Philadelphia in 
1876, in which all the nations of the world were invited to 
pardcipate. Preparadons were at once set on foot for the 
great celebradon. The European governments, with great 
cordiality, responded to the invitations extended to them by 
the government of the United States, and on the loth of 
May, 1876, the Internadonal Centennial tlxhibitlon was 
opened with the most imposing ceremonies, in the presence 
of an immense concourse of cidzens from all parts of the 
Union, and of the President of the United States and the 
Emperor of Brazil. 

The exhibldon remained open from May loth to No- 
vember loth, 1876, and was visited by several million 
people from the various States of the Union, from Canada, 
South America and Europe. It was one of the grandest 
and most notable events of the century. 

On the fourth day of July, 1876, the United States of 
America completed the one hundredth year of their exist- 
ance as an independent nation. The day was celebrated 
with imposing ceremonies and with the most patrlodc 
enthusiasm in all parts of the Union. The celebrations 
began on the night of the 3d of July, and were kept up 
until near^ midnight on the 4th. Each of the great cities 
of the Union vied with the others in the splendor and 



434 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



completeness of its rejoicings ; but the most Interesting of 
all tlie celebrations was naturally that which was held at 
Philadelphia, in which city the Declaration of Independence 
was adopted. The arrangements for the proper observance 
of the day were confided to the United States Centennial 
Commission, and extensive preparations were made to 
conduct them on a scale of splendor worthy of the glorious 
occasion. 

It was wisely resolved by the Commission that as the 
Declaration of Independence was signed in Independence 




OPENING CEREMONIES OF THE CENTENNL\L EXHIBITION. 

Hall and proclaimed to the people in Independence Square, 
the commemorative ceremonies should be so conducted as 
to make the venerable building the grand central figure of 
all the demonstrations. 

Being anxious that the Centennial celebration should do 
its share in cementing the reunion of the Northern and 
Southern States, the Commission began, at least a year 
before the occasion, the formation of a " Centennial Le- 
gion," consisting of a detachment of troops from each of 
the thirteen original States. The command of this splendid 
body of picked troops was conferred upon General Am 



SECOND TERM OF PRESIDENT GRANT. 435 

brose E. Burnside, of Rhode Island, and General Harry 
Heth, of Virginia, was chosen Lieutenant-Colonel. Both 
were veterans of the late civil war. The Legion was 
readily made up, the best volunteer commands of the 
original States being eager to serve in it. 

For a week previous to the 4th of July crowds of people 
began to pour steadily into Philadelphia. Volunteer 
organizations from the various States were constantly 
arriving, and were either encamped at various points in 
and around the Exhibition grounds, or were quartered at 
the various hotels. By the night of the 3d of July it was 
estimated that at least two hundred and fifty thousand 
strangers were assembled in Philadelphia. 

The Centennial ceremonies were begun on the morning 
of Saturday, the ist of July. The leading writers of the 
Union had been invited to prepare memoirs of the great 
men of our Revolutionary period, which were to be depos- 
ited among the archives of the State- House, and all who 
were able to accept the invitation assembled in Independ- 
ence Hall at eleven o'clock on the morning of July i, 1876, 
where they were joined by a number of invited guests. 
The ceremonies were opened by an address from Colonel 
Frank M. Etting, the chairman of the Committee on the 
Restoration of Independence Hall, and a prayer by the 
Rev. William White Bronson. Whittler's Centennial Hymn 
was then sung by a chorus of fifty voices. The names of 
the authors were then called, to which each responded in 
person or by proxy, and laid his memoir on the table in the 
hall. The exercises were then brought to a close, and the 
company repaired to the stand in Independence Square, 
where a large crowd had assembled. 

The ceremonies in the square were begun at half-past 
twelve o'clock with Helfrich's Triumphal March, performed 
by the Centennial Musical Association. Mr. John William 
Wallace, the president of the day, then delivered a short 
address, after which Whittier's Centennial Hymn was sung 
by a chorus of one hundred and fifty voices, and Mr. Wil- 
liam V. McKean reviewed at some length the great histor- 
ical event in commemoration of which the ceremonies were 



ftenwiipip- 1- IWlStt 'Bil l iii'"' • 'l!S'l°'"tf " 1T'"NI"fir'l«1 



I' i|. 



llf, 



i 

IS 



4 
i 



fe 







.ailliliiilMiiiiiM^^^ 



SECOND TERM OF PRESIDENT GRANT. 



437 



-held. After the band had played " God Save America," 
the Hon. Leverett Salstonstall, of Massachusetts, delivered 
an address, which elicited warm applause. " The Voice of 
the Old Bell," a Centennial ode, was then sung, and Gov- 
ernor Henry Lippitt, of Rhode Island, made a short speech. 
The band followed with a number of patriotic airs, and Mr. 
Wallace announced the unavoidable absence of General 
John A. Dix, and introduced in his place Frederick De 
Peyster, President of the New York Historical Society, who 
made a few remarks. After a Centennial ode, by S. C. 
Upham, had been sung by the chorus, the Hon. Benjamin 
Harris Brewster delivered an eloquent address, at the close 
of which another Centennial Hymn, by William Fennimore, 
was sung. Senator Frank P. Stevens, of Maryland, then 
said a few words, after which the " Star-Spangled Banner " 
was sung, and the exercises were brought to a close by a 
prayer from Bishop Stevens. 

The celebration ushering in the 4th of July was begun 
on the night of the 3d. A grand civic and torchlight pro- 
cession paraded the streets, which were brilliantly illumin- 
ated along the whole line of march. The procession began 
to move' about half-past eight o'clock at night, and consisted 
of deputations representative of the various trades of the 
city, the Centennial Commissioners from the various foreign 
countries taking part in the Exhibition, the Governors of a 
number of States of the Union, officers of the army and 
navy of the United States, civic and political associations, 
and officers of foreign men-of-war visidng the city. Some 
of the deputations bore torches, and these added to the 
brilliancy of the scene. All along the line fireworks were 
ascending into the air, and cheer after cheer went up from 
the dense masses of enthusiastic spectators which filled the 
sidewalks. 

Crowds had collected around Independence Hall, filling 
the street before it and the square in the rear of it. An 
orchestra and chorus were stationed on the stands in the 
square to hail the opening of the 4th with music. The 
movements of the procession were so timed that the head 
of the column arrived in front of Independence Hall pre- 



438 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



cisely at midnight. The crowd, which had been noisy but 
good-natured, was hushed into silence as the hands of the 
clock in the tower approached the midnight hour, and one 
hundred thousand people waited in breathless eagerness 
the strokes which were to usher in the glorious day. As 
the minute-hand swept slowly past the hour there was a 
profound silence, and then came rolling out of the lofty 
steeple the deep, liquid tones of the new liberty bell, sound- 
ing wonderfully solemn and sweet as they floated down to 
the crowd below. Thirteen peals were struck, and the 
first tone had hardly died away when there went up from 
the crowd such a shout as had never been heard in Phila- 
delphia before. It was caught up and re-echoed all over 
the city, and at the same time the musicians and singers in 
the square broke into the grand strains of the " Star-Span- 
gled Banner." All the bells and steam whistles in the city 
joined in the sounds of rejoicing, and fireworks and firearms 
made the noise ten-fold louder. When the " Star-Spangled 
Banner" was ended, the chorus in Independence Square 
sang the " Doxology," in which the crowd joined heartily, 
and the band then played national airs. 

The festivities were kept up until after two o'clock, and 
it was not until the first streaks of the dawn began to tinge 
the sky that the streets of the city resumed their wonted 
appearance. 

The lull in the festivities was not of long duration. The 
day was at hand, and it threatened to be mercilessly hot, 
as indeed it was. As the sun arose in his full-orbed splen- 
dor, the thunder of cannon from the Navy Yard, from the- 
heights of Fairmount Park, and from the Swedish, Brazilian 
and American war vessels in the Delaware, and the clang- 
ing of bells from every steeple in the city, roused the few 
who had managed to snatch an hour or two of sleep after 
the fatigues of the night, and by six o'clock the streets were 
again thronged. 

In view of the extreme heat of the weather, the military 
parade had been ordered for an early hour of the day. 

As soon as the parade was ended, the crowd turned into 
Independence Square, which was soon filled. Four thou- 



SECOND TERM OF PRESIDENT GRANT. 



439 



sand persons were given seats on the stand, and a vast 
crowd filled the square. As the invited guests appeared 
and took their seats on the platform, the prominent person- 
ages were cheered by the crowd. The Emperor of Brazil 
received a welcome that was especially noticeable for its 
heartiness. 

At a few minutes after ten o'clock, General Hawley, the 
President of the United States Centennial Commission, 
appeared at the speaker's stand and signaled to the or- 
chestra to begin. As the music ceased. General Hawley 
again came forward, and introduced, as the presiding officer 
of the day, the Hon. Thomas W. Ferry, Vice-Pres?dent of 
the United States, who was received with loud cheers. 
After a few remarks appropriate to the occasion, Vice-Pres- 
ident Ferry presented 
to the audience the 
Right Reverend Wil- 
liam Bacon Stevens, 
D. D., the Protestant 
Episcopal Bishop of 
Pennsylvania, whom he 
introduced as the ec- 
clesiastical successor of 
the first chaplain of the 
Continental Conorress. 
The bishop delivered a 
solemn and impressive 
prayer, during the ut- 
terance of which the 
whole audience stood 
with uncovered heads, 
silent and attentive, 
unmindful of the blaz- 
ing sun which poured 
GENERAL J. R. HAWLEY. ^own upon thcm. 

When the prayer was ended the Vice-President then 
announced that Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, a grand- 
son of the patriot of the Revolution who offered the reso- 
lution in Congress, that " these united colonies are and of 




440 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

r'vyht ought to be free and independent states," would read 
the Declaration of Independence from the original manu- 
script, which President Grant had intrusted to the mayor 
of Philadelphia. The faded and crumbling manuscript, 
held together by a simple frame, was then exhibited to the 
crowd and was greeted with cheer after cheer. Richard 
Henry Lee, a soldierly-looking Virginian, then came forward 
and read the Declaration ; but the enthusiasm of the crowd 
was too great to permit them to listen to it quietly. 

At the close of the reading Mr. John Welsh, chairman 
of the Centennial Board of Finance, then, at the sugges- 
tion of Vice-President Ferry, introduced Bayard Taylor, 
the poet of the day, who recited a noble ode, which was 
listened to with deep attendon, the audience occasionally 
breaking out into applause. When the poem was ended 
the chorus sang "Our National Banner." 

As the music died away, the Vice-President introduced 
the Hon. William M. Evarts, of New York, the orator of 
the day, Mr. Evarts was greeted with hearty cheers, after 
which he proceeded to deliver an eloquent and able ad- 
dress, reviewing the lessons of the past century and dwell- 
ing upon the great work America has performed for the 
world. 

At night the city was brilliandy illuminated, and a mag- 
nificent display of fireworks was given by the municipal 
authorides at old Fairmount. 

During the fall of 1876 also occurred another Presi- 
dential election. The Republican Convention assembled 
at Cincinnati, June 14th, and put in nomination for the 
Presidency, Rutherford B. Hayes, of Ohio, and for die 
Vice-Presidency, William A. Wheeler, of New York. The 
Democradc Convendon assembled at St. Louis, Missoiiri, 
on the 27th day of June, and put in nomination for the 
Presidency, Samuel J. Tilden, of New York, and for die 
Vice-Presidency, Thomas A. Hendricks of Indiana. 

The result of the elecdon was the closest ever before 
held in the United States. Both sides claimed the success 
of their dckets. The condidon of affairs was assuming a 
threatening aspect, when a proposition was made to provide 



SECOND TERM OF PRESIDENT GRANT. 44 1 

by law for a Joint High Commission to whom the whole 
subject should be referred. This was to consist of five 
members of the House, five of the Senate and five of the 
Supreme Court. To the Commission thus constituted, the 
whole subject was referred by special act of Congress. 
The counting commenced as usual on the regular day before 
both houses of Congress. When the disputed duplicated 
returns were reached they were referred, State by State, to 
the Joint High Commission. This Commission made its 
final decision on all the cases submitted to them, on the 2d 
day of March, and according to their decision, Hayes and 
Wheeler received one hundred and eighty-five votes, and 
Tilden and Hendricks one hundred and eighty-four votes. 

The army appropriadon bill of this session of Congress 
failed between the two houses. The Democratic majority 
in the House inserted a provision in the bill forbidding the 
use of any portion of the appropriadon in payment of 
troops or expenses of transporting troops, for the purpose 
of interfering in any way with elecdons. This was to pre- 
vent in the future the state of things then exisdng In South 
Carolina, Florida, Louisiana, and perhaps some other places. 
The Senate struck this provision out of the bill. The House 
adhered to the provision, and the whole bill was lost. 

General Grant, on the expiration of his second term, 
retired from office, but remained in Washington City, 
receiving marked demonstrations of the admiration of 
his friends for some months before starting upon an ex- 
tensive tour through hurope and the Eastern Continent. 

Unfortunately for the '' hero of Appomattox," he admitted 
to his friendship men who were not worthy of it, men who 
were not so honest as himself, who abused the positions of 
trust to which some of them were preferred. 

Coming into civil life unprepared, save by natural excel- 
lence of judgment, purity of intention, and firmness ot re- 
solve, his administration brought the country each year to 
that consummation of reduced expenses, lessened public 
debts, unquesdoned public credits, and peace at home and 
abroad, to which he stood pledged in assuming his respon- 
sibilities. 



1 



iiiifiiiiilHi 




442 



SECOND TERM OF PRESIDENT GRANT. 443 

In his second inaugural address, referring to this very 
subject, he said: 

"From my candidacy for my present office in 1868, to 
the close of the last Presidential campaign, I have been the 
subject of abuse and slander, scarcely ever equaled in poHt- 
ical history, which, to-day, I feel I can afford to disregard in 
view of your verdict, which I gratefully accept as my vindi- 
cation." 

During the excitement attending the disputed election of 
1876 Grant deported himself with the utmost fairness to- 
ward all parties interested, and although undoubtedly grat- 
ified at the finding of the commission appointed to decide 
whether Hayes or Tilden had been elected, it is not saying 
too much to assert that had the commission declared Mr. 
Tilden elected, the General would have taken every means 
to see him inducted into the high offfce he was about to 
vacate. 

The 4th of March, 1877, found him a free man, and he 
laid down the burden of public life with a sigh of relief. 
Now he was free, the ceremony of official existence could 
be dispensed with, and he could again return to the simple 
manner of livinor that most accorded with his tastes. 



J: 




i 



(444) 



CHAPTER XIIT. 

GENERAL GRANT'S TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 

Preparations for the Journey — Departure from Philadelphia — Arrival and Reception at 
Liverpool — Visiting the Docks — Manchester— Leicester— Bedford— London — Pre- 
sented vi^ith the Freedom of the City — Dining v^ith the Queen and the Prince of 
Wales — Starting for the European Continent— Brussels—The Rhine — Frankfort- 
Heidelberg- Switzerland — Strasburg— Metz — Return to England — Scotland — Paris 
— Visit to General MacMahon — Arrival of the " Vandalia '' at Villa Franca — 
Naples — Mount Vesuvius — Herculaneum and Pompeii — Sicily — Malta. 

On the 4th of March, 1877, General Ulysses S. Grant 
retired from the Presidency of the United States, his second 
term of office expiring on that day. 

It had for some time been General Grant's intention to 
seek in foreign travel the rest and recreation he had been 
so long denied by his constant official duties. For the first 
time since the spring of 1861 — a period of sixteen eventful 
and busy years to him — he was a private citizen, and free 
to direct his movements according to his own pleasure. 
He had successfully closed one of the greatest wars in his- 
tory, had devoted eight years to a troubled and exciting 
administration of the Chief Magistracy of the United 
States, and was sorely in need of rest. This, as has been 
said, he resolved to seek in travel in foreign lands. 

He devoted the few weeks followinof his withdrawal from 
office to arranging his private affairs, and engaged passage 
for himself, Mrs. Grant, and his son Jesse, on the steamer 
" Indiana," one of the American Line, sailing between Phil- 
adelphia and Liverpool — the only Transatlantic line flying 
the American flag. 

On the 9th of May, 1877, General Grant reached Phila- 
delphia. It was his intention to pass the last week of his 
stay in his own country with his friends in that city, who 
were very numerous. 

On the loth of May, the day after his arrival, he visited 
the Permanent Exhibition — the successor of the Centennial 
Exhibition — on the occasion of its opening. Just one year 

(445) 



^^5 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

before this, General Grant, in his official capacity as Pres- 
ident of the United States, had formally opened the great 
World's Fair on the same spot. 

Beino- desirous of rendering General Grant's stay abroad 
as pleasant as possible, President Hayes caused the Sec- 
retary of State to forward the following official note to 
all thediplomatic representatives of this government abroad; 

" Department of State, Washington, May 23d, 1877. 
*' To the Diplomatic and Consular Officers of the United States : 

'' Gentlemen : General Ulysses S. Grant, the late President of the 
United States, sailed from Philadelphia on the 17th inst., for Liverpool. 

'' The route and extent of his travels, as well as the duration of his 
sojourn abroad, were alike undetermined at the time of his departure, 
the object of his journey being to secure a few months of rest and recre- 
ation after sixteen years of unremitting and devoted labor in the military 
and civil service of his country. 

" The enthusiastic manifestations of popular regard and esteem for 
General Grant shown by the people in all parts of the country that he 
has visited since his retirement from official life, and attending his every 
appearance in public from the day of that retirement up to the moment 
of his departure for Europe, indicate beyond question the high place he 
holds in the grateful affections of his countrymen. 

'' Sharing in the largest measure this general public sentiment, and at 
the same time expressing the wishes of the President, I desire to invite 
the aid of the Diplomatic and Consular Officers of the Government to 
make his journey a pleasant one should he visit their posts. I feel already 
assured that you will find patriotic pleasure in anticipating the wishes of 
the Department by showing him that attention and consideration which 
is due from every officer of the Government to a citizen of the Republic 
so signally distinguished both in official service and personal renown. 

" I am, Gentlemen, your obedient Servant, Wm. M. Evarts." 

The receptions and attentions indicated in Mr. Evarts' 
letter, which were tendered to General Grant before his 
departure, were of a grandiose character, especially those 
given on the evening of the 14th of May by the Union 
League Club of Philadelphia, and on the i6th by Mr. 
George W. Childs, at the latter's residence. 

On the morning of the departure, Mrs. Grant and Jesse 
Grant, accompanied by a host of friends, were taken to the 
" Indiana " by the United States revenue cutter " Hamilton," 
while the General v^as escorted by a distinguished company 
on board the steamer " Twilight." The occasion was utilized 
to give General Grant a farewell breakfast, and among 



GENERAL GRANTS TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 447 

those at the table In the saloon of the " Twilight " were 
ex-Secretaries Fish, Robeson and Chandler, Senator 
Cameron, Governor Hartranft, General Sherman and 
Mayor Stokley. - __ _ 

When the time came for speeches, General Sherman, 
referring to the welcome extended by the populace crowded 
on the banks of the Delaware to see their idol off on his 
trip, said : 




RECEPTION TO GENERAL GRANT AT THE HOUSE OF HIS 
FRIEND, MR. GEORGE W. CHILDS. 

" This proud welcome demands a response. General Grant leaves here 
to-day with the highest rewards of his fellow-citizens, and on his arrival 
at the other side there is no doubt he will be welcomed by friends with 
as willing hands and warm hearts as those he leaves behind. Ex-Presi- 
dent Grant — General Grant — while you, his fellow-citizens, speak of him 
and regard him as ex-President Grant ; I cannot but think of the times of 
the war, of General Grant, President of the United States for eight years, 
yet I cannot but think of him as the General Grant of Fort Donelson. 



448 . LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

" I think of him as the man who, when the country was in the hour of 

its peril, restored its hopes when he marched triumphant into Fort Don- 

elson. After that none of us felt the least doubt as to the future of our 

country, and therefore, if the name of Washington is allied with the birth \ 

J of our country, that of Grant is forever identified with its preservation, J 

\\ts perpetuation. 

''It is not here alone on the shores of the Delaware that the people 
love and respect you, but in Chicago and St. Paul, and in far-off San 
Francisco, the prayers go up to-day that your voyage may be prosperous 
and pleasant. God bless you and grant you a pleasant journey and a safe 
return to your native land." 

To this General Grant, who was deeply affected, re- 
sponded : 

** I feel much overcome by what I have heard. When the first toast 
was offered, I supposed the last words here for me had been spoken, and 
I feel overcome by sentiments to which I have listened, and which I feel 
I am altogether inadequate to respond to. I don't think that the coni- 
pliments ought all to be paid to me or any one man in either of the posi- 
tions which I was called upon to fill. 

''That which I accomplished — which I was able to accomplish — I owe 
to the assistance of able lieutenants. I was so fortunate as to be called 
to the first position in the army of the nation, and I had the good for- 
tune to select lieutenants who could have filled"— here the general 
turned to Sherman — "had it been necessary, I believe some of these 
lieutenants could have filled my place may be better than I did. I do 
not, therefore, regard myself as entitled to all the praise. 

'* I believe that my friend Sherman could have taken my place as a 
soldier as well as I could, and the same will apply to Sheridan. And I 
believe, finally, that if our country ever comes into trial agam, young 
men will spring up equal to the occasion, and if one fails, there will be 
another to take his place. Just as there was if I had failed." 

The modesty of this address shows General Grant in his 

truest light, while its tact, and the easy, self-possessed way 

/with which it was delivered, were evidences of theNdevelop- 

i ment of a new talent — that of ready speaking on the part 

[of one who had won the sobriquet of " The Silent Man." 

VWe need not dwell upon the enthusiastic applause and 

cheers with which the speech was received by the hearers. 

When the "Twilight" reached the "Indiana," Mrs. Grant 

and Jesse were already on board, and amid the booming 

of cannon and the waving of salutes the ever memorable 

trip around the world was begun. 

The " Indiana " was a first-class steamer, and was com- 
manded by Captain Sargeant, an accomplished navigator 



GENERAL GRANt's TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 449 

and an amiable gentleman. She was regarded as one ot 
the most comfortable vessels in the fleet of the American 
line, and is a first-rate sailer. Both the company and the 
officers of the ship exerted themselves to render the voyage 
of General and Mrs. Grant a pleasant one, and in this they 
succeeded admirably. 

The "Indiana" passed the Capes on the afternoon of 
the 17th of May, and by sunset was fairly out at sea. The 
voyage was unusually rough, but the General and Jesse 




GENERAL GRANT LEAVING THE "TWHJGHT" TO EMBARK 
ON THE "INDIANA" 

proved themselves good sailors. Mrs. Grant suffered 
somewhat from sea-sickness, but, on the whole, enjoyed the 
voyage. With the exception of the rough weather, there 
was nothing worthy ot notice connected with the run across 
the Atlantic, except the death and burial of a child of one 
•of the steerage passengers. The General and Jesse never 
missed a meal, and the former smoked constantly — an ex- 
cellent test of his sea-going qualities. 

Once on board the " Indiana," General Grant seemed a 
changed man. He dropped the silence and reserve that 
had been for so many years among his chief characteristics, 
29 



450 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



and conversed freely and with animation, entered heartily 
into the various amusements that were gotten up to beguile 
the tedium of the voyage, and was by common consent 
regarded as the most agreeable person on the ship. Said 
Captain Sargeant in speaking of the General's hearty good 
nature during the voyage : " There is no one who can make 
himself more entertaining or agreeable in his conversation 

when nobody has an axe to grind." Indeed the Captain 

declared that he had found the General the most interesting 
and entertaining talker he had ever met. 

The voyage was of 

great benefit to General 

vpA\\ -^w^ / mi Grant, and on the first 

--^^-^''^^ - »ii tain that he felt better 

than he had for sixteen 
years, since the begin- 
ning of the war, and that 
he keenly relished the 
consciousness that he 
had no letters to read 
and no telegraphic dis- 
patches to attend to, but 
was free to do nothing 
but enjoy the voyage. 

On the morning of the 
27th of May the "In- 
diana " arrived off the 
coast of Ireland. Off 
Fastnet Light she was 
compelled to lie to for eight hours in a dense fog. _ It finally 
lifted, however, and the passengers had a fine view of the 
coast of Ireland. Oueenstown harbor was reached about 
seven o'clock, and the weather being rough, the "Indiana" 
ran into the harbor to discharge her mails and such pas- 
sengers as wished to land at Queenstown. A steam tug 
came alongside, bearing Mr. John Russell Young, the 
European correspondent of the New York Herald, and a 
number of prominent citizens of Queenstown, who came 




AT SEA.— A CHAT WITH THE CAPTAIN. 



GENERAL GRANT's TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 45 1 



ou board the steamer and heartily welcomed General Grant 
to Ireland. They also cordially invited him to stay with 
them awhile, as their guest. 

On the afternoon of the 28th of May the "Indiana" 
reached Liverpool. The shipping in the port was deco- 
rated with the flags of all nations, among which the Stars 
and Stripes were conspicuous. The passengers were con- 
veyed in a tender to the landing stage, where General 
Grant was met by Mr. A. R. Walker, the Mayor of Liver- 
pool, who welcomed him 
to Enorland's o^reat sea- ^ 
port, and offered him the ^ 
hospitalities of the city, in 
the following- well-chosen 
words : 

"General Grant: I am ^ 
proud that it has fallen to my 
lot, as Chief Magistrate of 
Liverpool, to welcome to the 
shores of England so distin- 
guished a citizen of the United 
States. You have, sir, stamped 
your name on the history of 
the world by your brilliant 
career as a soldier, and still 
more as a statesman in the 
interests of peace. In the 
name of Liverpool, whose in- 
terests are so closely allied with 
your great country, I bid you 
heartily welcome, and I hope 
Mrs. Grant and yourself will 
enjoy your visit to old England." 

General Grant expressed his thanks to the Mayor for his 
kind reception, and was then introduced to a number of 
prominent citizens of Liverpool, after which the whole party 
drove to the Adelphi Hotel, where General Grant was to 
stay during his sojourn in the city. 

On the morning of the 29th, General Grant and party, ac- 
companied by the Mayor of Liverpool and a deputadon of 
citizens, embarked on the tender '^Vigilant," and proceeded 
to the extreme end of the river wall, where they inspected 
the new docks in process of construction. 




ARRIVAL AT LIVERPOOL. 



452 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



After returning from the docks General Grant and his 
party drove to the Town Hall, where they were entertained 
at luncheon by the Mayor. Numerous prominent citizens 
were present. Afterward, with the Mayor, the party visited 
the Newsroom and Exchange. The General's reception or 
'Change by the crowd, which entirely filled the room, was 
very cordial. He made a brief speech of thanks from the 
balcony, which was received with reiterated cheering. The 
Mayor, in the name of the city, tendered to General Grant 
and his party a public banquet, to take place at some future 
time. 

Having inspected many celebrated institutions of Liver- 
pool, General Grant and his party left Liverpool, on the 
30th day of May, for Manchester. 

After a reception at the Town Hall, General Grant and 
party were taken to see the most famous manufactories of 
Manchester, where the process of preparing the different 
goods was explained to them. They then visited the great 
warehouse of Sir James Watts, the Assize Courts and the 
Royal Exchange. 

Upon reaching London, General Grant found that the 
American Minister, the Hon. Edwards Pierrepont, had 
accepted for him a round of invitations that would occupy 
his time far into the month of June. 

On the morning after his arrival in London he went to 
the Oaks at Epsom to witness the Derby Races, that sport 
so dear to the English heart. The Prince of Wales, learning 
that the General was on the grounds, expressed a desire to 
meet him, and General Grant was accordingly presented 
to the Prince, who cordially welcomed him to England. On 
the evening of the same day, the General dined with the 
Duke of Wellington at Apsley House. The Duke, in 
tendering the invitation, had said that it seemed to him a fit 
thmg that General Grant's first dinner in London should be 
at Apsley House — thus delicately inUmating that he would 
feel honored in receiving within the home of the great 
conqueror of Napoleon the great soldier who had brought 
the American struggle to a successful close. 

On the 7th of June General Grant was presented at 
. Court and was cordially received by the Queen. 



GENERAL GRANTS TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 



453 



Among the places visited in London by General Grant 
were the Houses of Parliament, the Tower, St. Paul's 
Cathedral, the Bank of England, the Royal Exchange, the 
British Museum, the Mansion House and the Docks^ 

After a visit at Southampton, where Mrs. Sartoris, his 
only daughter, Nellie, lived. General Grant returned to 
London, and on the 1 5th he was formally presented with the 
freedom of the city of London. This important ceremony 






V^^ n 




GENERAL GRANT MEETING THE PRINCE OF WALES. 

took place at Guildhall. It constitutes the highest distinc- 
tion the municipality of London can confer upon a person 
it desires to honor, and has only once before been conferred 
upon an American — the late George Peabody. 

About eight hundred ladies and gentlemen, including 
several members of the Government, American consuls, 
merchants and the principal representatives of the trade 
and commerce of London, were invited to meet the General 



454 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



at luncheon, subsequent to the civic ceremony. Among 
the o-uests were Sir Stafford Northcote, Chancellor of the 
Exchequer, and many members of Parliament. The 
entrance to the hall and the corridors of the Guildhall were 
laid with crimson cloth. The walls were decorated with 
mirrors and exodcs. The guests began to arrive about 
half-past eleven o'clock, and from that time until half-past 
twelve a steady stream of carriages poured into the Guild- 
hall yard. General Grant arrived about one o'clock. 

The General was accompanied by Mrs. Grant and Minis- 
ter and Mrs. Pierrepont. He was received at the entrance 
of the Guildhall by a deputation consisdng of four Alder- 
men with their chairman, six members of the City Land 
Committee, including the mover and seconder of the reso- 
ludon for presenting the freedom of thecity to the General, 
and was by them conducted to the library, where he was 
received by the Lord Mayor, and took a seat on the dais, 
on the left hand of his Lordship, who occupied the chair as 
President of a Special Court of the Common Council, at 
which were assembled most of the members of the Corpo- 
ration, the Aldermen wearing their scarlet robes aad the 
Common Councilmen their mazarin gowns. 

The resoludon of the Court was read by the Town Clerk, 
and General Grant, after an address made by the Cham- 
berlain, Mr. B. Scott, was admitted to the freedom of the 
city, the Chamberlain making the official announcement to 
him in these words : 

" The unprecedented facilities of modern travel, and the running to 
and fro of all classes in our day, have brought to our shores unwonted 
visitors from Asia, as well as from Europe — rulers of empires both an- 
cient and of recent creation ; but amongst them all we have not as yet 
received a President of the United States of America— a power great, 
flourishing and free, but so youthful that it celebrated only last year its 
first centennial. A visit of the ruling President of those States is scarcely 
to be looked for, so highly valued are his services at home during his 
limited term of office ; you must bear with us, therefore. General, if we 
make much of an Ex-President of the great republic of the New World 
visiting the old home of his fathers. It is true that those first fathers — 
Pilgrim Fathers we now call them— chafed under the straitness of the 
parental rule, and sought in distant climes the liberty then denied them 
at home ; it is true, likewise, that their children subsequently resented 
the interference, well intended if unwise, of their venerated parent, and 



GENERAL GRANTS TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 455 

manifested a spirit of independence of parental restraint not unbecoming 
in grown-up sons of the Anglo-Saxon stock. Yet, for all this, there is 
furnished, from time to time, abundant evidence that both children and 
parent have forgotten old differences and forgiven old wrongs ; that the 
children continue to revere the mother country, while she is not wanting 
in maternal pride at witnessing so numerous, so thriving and so freedom- 
loving a race of descendants. If other indications were wanting of 
mutual feelings of regard, we should find them, on the one hand, in the 
very hospitable and enthusiastic reception accorded to the Heir Appar- 
ent to the British throne, and subsequently to H. R. H. Prince Arthur, 
when, during your presidency, he visited your country; and on the 
other hand, in the cordial reception which, we are gratified to observe, 
you have received from the hour when you set foot on the shores of Old 
England. In this spirit, and with these convictions, the Corporation of 
London receives you to-day with all kindliness of welcome, desiring to 
compliment you and your country in your person by conferring upoii 
you the honorary freedom of their ancient city — a freedom which had 
existence more than eight centuries before your first ancestors set foot on 
Plymouth Rock ; a freedom confirmed to the citizens, but not originated, 
(by the Norman conqueror, which has not yet lost its significance or its 
value, although the liberty which it symbolizes has been extended to 
other British subjects, and has become the inheritance of the great 
Anglo-American family across the Atlantic. But we not only recognize 
in you a citizen of the United States, but one who has made a distin- 
guished mark in American history — a soldier whose military capabilities 
brought him to the front in the hour of his country's sorest trial, and 
enabled him to strike the blow which terminated fratricidal war and re- 
united his distracted country; who also manifested magnanimity in the 
hour of triumph, and amidst the national indignation created by the 
assassination of the great and good Abraham Lincoln, by obtaining for 
vanquished adversaries the rights of capitulated brethren in arms, when 
some would have treated them as traitors to their country. We further 
recognize in you a President upon whom was laid the honor, and with it 
the responsibility, during two terms of office, of a greater and more 
difficult task than that which devolved upon you as a general in the field 
—that of binding up the bleeding frame of society which had been rent 
asunder when the demon of slavery was cast out. That the constitution 
of the country over which you were thus called to preside survived so 
fearful a shock, that we saw it proud and progressive, celebrating its centen- 
nial during the last year of your official rule, evinces that the task which 
your countrymen had committed to you did not miscarry m your hands. 
"That such results have been possible must, in fairness, be attributed 
in no considerable degree to the firm but conciliatory policy of your ad- 
ministration at home and abroad, which is affirmed of you by the reso u- 
tion of this honorable Court, whose exponent and mouthpiece I am this 
day. May you greatly enjoy your visit to our country at this favored 
season of the year, and may your life be long spared to witness in your 
country and in our own— the two great branches of the Anglo-baxon 
family — a career of increasing amity, mutual respect and honest, -■» 



GENERAL GRANT's TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 457 

spirited, rivalry— rivalry in trade, commerce, agriculture and manufacture, 
in the arts, science and literature; rivalry in the highest of all arts, how 
best to promote the well-being and to develop the industry of nations, 
how to govern them for the largest good to the greatest number, and for 
the advancement of peace, liberty, morality and the consequent haopi- 
ness of mankind. Nothing now remains. General, but that I should 
present to you an illuminated copy of the resolutions of this honorable 
Court, for the reception of which an appropriate casket is in course of 
preparation; and, in conclusion, offer you, in the name of this honorable 
Court, the right hand of fellowship as a citizen of London." 

When the cheers which followed this speech had subsided. 
General Grant replied as follows : 

" It is a matter of some regret to me that I have never cultivated that 
art of public speaking which might have enabled me to express in suitable 
terms my gratitude for the compliment which has been paid to my country- 
men and myself on this occasion. Were I in the habit of speaking in 
public, I should claim the right to express my opinion, and what I believe 
will be the opinion of my countrymen when the proceedings of this day 
shall have been telegraphed to them. For myself, I have been very much 
surprised at my reception at all places since the day I landed at Liverpool 
up to my appearance in this, the greatest city in the world. It was 
entirely unexpected, and it is particularly gratifying to me. I believe 
that this honor is intended quite as much for the country which I have 
had the opportunity of serving in different capacities, as for myself, and 
I am glad that this is so, because I want to see the happiest relations 
existing, not only between the United States and Great Britain, but also 
between the United States and all other nations. Although a soldier by 
education and profession, I have never felt any sort of fondness for war, 
and I have never advocated it except as a means of peace. I hope that 
we shall always settle our differences in all future negotiations as amicably 
as we did in a recent instance. I believe that settlement has had a happy 
effect on both countries, and that from month to month, and year to year, 
the tie of common civilization and common blood is getting stronger 
between the two countries My Lord Mayor, ladies, and gentlemen, I 
again thank you for the honor you have done me and my country to-day." 

This reply was received with loud cheers, after which 
General Grant signed his name to the roll of honorary 
freemen of the city of London. 

The Lord Mayor now conducted General Grant to the 
great hall, where a luncheon was served upon twenty tables. 
After the health of the Queen was drunk, the Lord Mayor 
in a cordial and tasteful speech proposed the health of Gen- 
eral Grant, which was drunk with applause. General Grant, 
in reply, said : 

** My Lord Mayor, Ladies, and Gentlemen : Habits formed in early 



458 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

life and early education press upon us as we grow older. I was brought 
up a soldier — not to talking. I am not aware that I ever fought two 
battles on the same day in the same place, and that I should be called 
upon to make two speeches on the same day under the same roof is 
beyond my understanding. What I do understand is, that I am much 
indebted to all of you for the compliment you have paid me. All I can 
do is to thank the Lord Mayor for his kind words, and to thank the 
citizens of Great Britain here present in the name of my country and 
for myself." 

On the 1 6th of June General Grant and his family dined 
at Kensington Palace, with the Princess Louise and the 
Marquis of Lome. The next day they dined with Mr. 
Morgan, an American banker, residing in London. 

On the 19th of June General Grant dined with the Prince 
of Wales, at Marlborough House, to meet the Emperor of 
Brazil. Marlborough House is the London residence of 
the Prince of Wales, and stands in Pall Mall, St. James'. 
It was built by the great Duke of Marlborough, but was 
purchased by the Crown in 181 7, for the Princess Charlotte 
and Prince Leopold, the latter of whom afterwards became 
the first King of Belgium. Queen Adelaide, the widow of 
William IV., also lived here for a number of years. After 
dinner the General visited the office of the London Times, 
and was shown over the establishment by Mr. J. C. Mac- 
donald, the manager of the paper. On the 20th the Gen- 
eral dined with Lord Ripon, and on the 21st with Minister 
Pierrepont, to meet the Prince of Wales. On the 21st he 
attended a reception given by Mrs. Hicks, an American 
lady residing in London. In the evening, in company with 
Mrs. Grant and General Badeau, he attended a perform- 
ance of " Martha," at the Covent Garden Theatre. He 
wore his uniform on this occasion, and as he entered the 
curtain rose, showing the stage decorated with American 
flags, and occupied by the full company. Madame Albani, 
the prima donna of the evening, sang the *' Star Spangled 
Banner" (the company joining in the chorus), accompanied 
by the orchestra. During the singing the General and the 
entire audience remained standing. 

On the evening of the 2 2d General Grant attended a 
banquet given by Trinity Board, at their handsome hall on 
Tower Hill. This Board has charge of the pilotage, light* 



GENERAL GRANTS TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 459 

houses, etc., of the United Kingdom. The Prince of Wales 
presided at this banquet. Prince Leopold, Prince Christian, 
the Prince of Leiningen, the Prince of Saxe-Weimar, the 
Duke of Wellington, the Marquis of Hertford, the Earl 
of Derby, the Earl of Carnarvon, Sir Stafford Northcote, 
Mr. Cross and Chief-Justice Sir Alexander Cockburn were 
among the distinguished company present. 

The Prince of Wales, referring to General Grant, in the 
course of his speech, said: 

*'On the present occasion it is a matter of peculiar gratification to us 
as Englishmen to receive as our guest G^^neral Gram. (Cheers.) I can 
assure him for myself, and for all loyal subjects of the Queen, that it has 
given us the greatest pleasure to see him as a guest in this country." 
(Cheers.) 

Earl Carnarvon proposed the health of the visitors, and 
coupled with it General Grant's name. He said: 

'' Strangers of all classes, men of letters, arts, science, state, and all 
that has been most worthy and great, have, as it were, come to this centre 
of old civilization. I venture, without disparagement to any of those 
illustrious guests, to say that never has there been one to whom we will- 
ingly accord a freer, fuller, heartier welcome than we do to General Grant. 

" On this occasion, not merely because we believe he has performed 
the part of a distinguished general, nor because he has twice filled the 
highest office which the citizens of his great country can fill, but because 
we look upon him as representing that good-will and affection which 
ought to subsist between us and the United States. It has been my duty 
to be connected with the great Dominion of Canada, stretching several 
thousand miles along the frontier of the United States, and during the 
last three or four years I can truthfully say that nothing impressed me 
more than the interchange of friendly and good offices which took place 
between the two countries under the auspices of President Grant." 

General Grant replied that he felt more impressed than 
he had possibly ever felt before on any occasion. He 
came here under the impression that this was Trinity 
House, and that trinity consisted of the army, navy and 
peace. He thought it was a place of quietude, where 
there would be no talk or toasts. He had been therefore 
naturally surprised at hearing both. He had heard some 
remarks from His Royal Highness which compelled him to 
say a word in response. He begged to thank His High- 
ness for these remarks. There had been other things said 
during the evening highly gratifying to him. 




.ALBERT EDWARD, PRINCE OK WALES. 



(460) 



GENERAL GRANt's TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 46 1 

On the morning of the 23d General Grant paid a visit 
to Earl Russel , who was living in retirement at his home 
at Pembroke Lodge, in Richmond Park, a special o-ift to 
him from the Queen His visit was a pleasint one, and 
the venerable English leader expressed himself as much 
gratified by the attention shown him by the General 

On the 25th General Grant attended an entertainment 
at the house of Mr. McHenry, the celebrated financier and 
in the evening took dinner with Lord Derby at his house 
in ht. James' Square. 

On the afternoon of the 27th of June, General and Mrs 
Grant, accompanied by Jesse Grant, Mr. and Mrs Pierre- 
pont and General Badeau, to whom invitations had also 
been extended, left London for Windsor. The trip was a 
short one, the train reaching the latter place in forty-five 
minutes from London. At half-past eight in the evenino- 
the Queen, surrounded by her Court, received her ouests 
m the beautiful corridor extending around the soudi and 
east sides of the quadrangle, and leading to her private 
apartments. 

As the party were assem.bling for dinner the following- 
dispatch was received and delivered by the Queen to Gen- 
eral Grant: 

'' Providence, Rhode Island. 
''Fro7?t General Hartranft, Co m?n ana er -in- Chief, to Gei^^rxlV S 
Grant, C^r^" <?/" Her Majesty the Queen. 
'^Your comrades in national encampment assembled, in Rhode Island 
send heartiest greeting to their old commander, and desire, through 
i^ngland s Queen, to thank England for Grant's reception." 

General Grant having communicated the contents of this 

dispatch to Her Majesty, who expressed her gratification 

at the hearty greedng, returned the following reply: 

" Grateful for telegram. Conveyed message to the Queen. Thank my 
old comrades." ^ 

The dinner passed off pleasandy, and during its progress 
the band of the Grenadier Guards, stationed ^in the Quad- 
rangle, discoursed sweet music. After the repast warover 
the Queen conversed for a while with her guests, and at 
ten o'clock withdrew, followed by her attendants. The re- 
mainder of the evening, until half-past eleven, was spent in 




(462) 



GENERAL GRANT's TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 463 

conversation and playing whist with the members of the 
Royal household. The next morning General Grant and 
party returned to London. 

Later in the day the General, in company with his son 
Jesse and General Badeau, went to Liverpool, where the 
General was a guest at a dinner given in his honor by the 
mayor and corporation of that city. He thus fulfilled an 
engagement made at 
the time of his landing 
at Liverpool. Two 
hundred and fifty per- 
sons sat down to table, 
and the dinner was in 
all respects a marked 
success. The mayor 
proposed the health of 
General Grant, and 
the General responded 
in one of his happiest 
speeches. The next 
morning the party re- 
turned to London. 

On the evening of 
the Fourth there was a 
reception at the Ameri- 
can Legation. The 
occasion was not a very 
ceremonious one; and 
with a single exception, 
only Americans were 

on guard that night. The exception was 
Capel. The dinner was informal and private. Most of the 
distinguished Americans known to be passing through 
London were invited, and were present. 

With the Fourth of July festivities General Grant's first 
visit to London came to an end. The season was over, and 
the people were leaving the city for the seaside and the 
other summer resorts patronized by the English. Dullness 
was settling down upon London, and there was but litde to 




GRANT'S RECEPTION AT THE 
AMERICAN LEGATION. 



Monsi^nor 



464 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

induce the General to remain in the metropolis. He there- 
fore resolved to spend the remainder of the summer in a 
brief run to the Continent of Europe. Accordingly, on the 
morning of the 6th of July, he left London for Ostend, in 
Belgium, where the General and his party passed the night, 
and the next morning set out by rail for Brussels. At the 
ancient city of Ghent a halt was made. Accompanied by 
the American Consul at that place, the General and his party 
visited the principal points of interest in the city. 

One of General Grant's first acts, after arriving in Brus- 
sels, was to visit Mr. A. P. Merrill, the American Minister, 
who was confined to his bed by illness. 

On the 7th the General and his party visited the sights 
of the city, among them the Hotel de Ville, a beautiful 
structure, founded in 1400, and celebrated as one of the 
most perfect specimens of Gothic architecture in the world. 
It abounds in exquisite and quaint sculptures, and is sur- 
mounted by a pyramidal tower 368 feet in height. The 
General and his companions were recived by the municipal 
authorities, and were shown through the building. Among 
the objects of interest exhibited was the Golden Book, which 
contains the signatures of famous visitors to the place for 
generations back. The General, at the request of the au- 
thorities, inscribed his name in this volume. On the same 
day the General received a call at his hotel from King Leo- 
pold. They had a long and interesting conversation, and 
separated mutually pleased with each other. On the 8th 
General and Mrs. Grant returned the call of the King at 
the palace. In the evening the King entertained the Gen- 
eral at a banquet, at which a brilliant company was 
present. 

On Monday morning, July 9th, General Grant left Brus- 
sels for Cologne, travelling in the royal railway carriage, 
which the King had placed at his disposal. The distance 
from Brussels to Cologne is one hundred and forty-one 
miles, and the route lies through a charming and deeply in- 
teresting region. 

General Grant was met upon his arrival in the city by 
the civil and military authorities of the place, and was cor- 



GENERAL GRANT'S TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 465 

dially welcomed by them to Cologne. He then visited the 
prominent places of interest in the city. 

On the morning of the loth General Grant and his party 
embarked in one of the little steamers navigatint^ the Rhine, 
and ascended that river as far as Coblentz. The voyage 
was delightful, the travellers passing the university town 
of Bonn, and enjoying fine views of the Siebengebirge and 
the Drachenfels, the scene of Siegfried's fight witli and 
victory over the dragon, whose blood made him invulner- 
able. Rolandseck, with its ruined casde, and the island of 
Nonnenwerth, with its nunnery, or "kloster," reminding the 
traveller of the sad legend of Roland and Hildegunde, 
were passed, and in the afternoon the travellers entered the 
magnificent region lying below Coblentz. 

The balance of the day and the night were passed at 
Coblentz, which town is situated between the rivers Rhine 
and Moselle. It is triangular in shape, is defended by 
powerful fortifications, and is the bulwark of Germany. 

On the nth General Grant visited Wiesbaden, one of 
the most beautiful and famous watering-places on the Con- 
tinent; and on the 12th went to Frankfort, where he was 
met by a committee of ten gendemen, represendng the 
American citizens of the place, and conducted to the Hotel 
de Russie. In the evening he was entertained by his fellow- 
countrymen in Frankfort at dinner in the celebrated (Pahjien 
Garten, one hundred and fifty gendemen being present on 
the occasion. After dinner he strolled through the gardens, 
which were densely crowded by persons who were anxious 
to see him. 

On the 13th the General and his party made an excur- 
sion to Homburg, a noted watering-place, where he was 
received by a committee of Americans, headed by ex-Gov- 
ernor Ward, of New Jersey. This was formerly one of the 
most noted gambling places in Europe, but in 1872 gaming 
was suppressed by law. The General and his companions, 
after seeing the sights of Homburg, drove to Salburg, near 
which is a celebrated Roman camp, which is carefully pre- 
served by the Prussian Government. The General was 
received by the officers in charge of it, who caused the 
30 



466 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

grave of a Roman soldier, who had been dead for over 
eighteen hundred years, to be opened. Returning to Hom- 
burg, the General dined with his American friends, and 
spent the balance of the evening in strolling through the 
beautiful gardens of the Kursaal, which were brilliantly 
illuminated in his honor. At eleven o'clock p. m. the party 
took the cars for Frankfort. On the 14th some of the noted 
wine-cellars of Frankfort were visited, and there was a 
dinner in the Zooloo-ical Gardens. 

On Sunday morning, July 15th, the General and his party 
proceeded from Frankfort to Heidelberg, the interesting 
capital of the old Palatinate. 

From there General Grant went to Baden-Baden, one of 
the most noted as well as the most beautiful towns. A 
brief and pleasant stay was made here, and the famous 
Black Forest was visited, after which the party proceeded 
to Switzerland. 

The route travelled by the General and his party lay 
through Basle, Lucerne, Interlaken and Berne, to Geneva. 
But a brief halt v\^as made at Basle, which lies on both 
sides of the Rhine, and in full view of the Black Forest 
and the Jura. 

From Basle the General and his party proceeded direct 
to Lucerne, travelling by the Central Swiss Railway. After 
visiting the most celebrated and beautiful places, including 
Berne, Lucerne, Thun, Interlaken, Geneva, Chamounix, 
Mont Blanc, the lakes of Upper Italy, the Splugen Pass, 
the Via Mala, and availing himself of the benefits of the 
celebrated Springs of Pfaeffers, General Grant proceeded, 
via Zurich, direct to Strasburg and Metz, where he inspected 
the fortifications and some of the most celebrated battle- 
fields of the Franco-German War. Via Antwerp, he re- 
turned to England, reaching London on the 27th of August. 

General Grant, having promised to visit Scotland, deter- 
mined to devote to that purpose the first weeks following 
his return from the Continent. He proceeded direct from 
London to Edinburgh, where he arrived on the 31st of 
August. He was received by the Lord Provost in a speech 
marked by eloquence and warmth of feeling, and was the 




467 



^68 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

(ruest of that high official during his stay in Scotland. 
Among the honors shown him was the presentation of the 
freedom of the city. This ceremony took place at the Free 
Assembly Hall, and in the presence of some two thousand 
of the principal citizens of Edinburgh. The Lord Provost's 
address was hearty and cordial, and General Grant said, in 
reply : 

" I am so filled with emotion that I hardly know how to thank you for 
thelhonor conferred upon me by making me a burgess of this ancient 
City of Edinburgh. I feel that it is a great compliment to me and to 
my country. Had I eloquence, I might dwell somewhat on the history 
of the great men you have produced, or the numerous citizens of this 
city and Scotland that have gone to America, and the record they have 
made. We are proud of Scotchmen as citizens of America. They 
make good citizens of our country, and they find it profitable to them- 
selves. (Laughter.) I again thank you for the honor you have con- 
ferred upon me." 

General Grant visited the various points of interest in 
Edinburgh during his stay in that city, and was gready 
pleased with the beauty and splendor of the Scottish 
metropolis. 

On the evening of the day of his arrival in Scodand, 
General Grant dined with the Lord Provost, and met 
Major-General Stewart, the Commander-in-Chief of the 
British Army in Scodand, and several other distinguished 
officers. 

The next day, Saturday, September ist, an excursion was 
made to the Tay Bridge, after which the party sailed across 
the Firth of Tay in the steam-tug ''Elsinore," and landed at 
Dundee, which city is picturesquely situated on the north 
side of the Firth. 

On the 1 3th of September General Grant made a visit 
to Glasgow, and was formally presented with the freedom 
of the city. The ceremony took place in the Town Hall, 
one of the largest halls in the city, which was filled with an 
audience represendng the most prominent citizens of the 
place. The Lord Provost, addressing General Grant in a 
complimentary speech, delivered to him the address of the 
Common Council in which the honorary freedom of the 
city was conferred upon him. This address stated that the 
Common Council of the city of Glasgow admitted and re- 



i 




PALACE OF HOLYROOD-VISITED BY GENERAL GRANT. 

469 



470 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

ceived, and hereby admit "and receive, General Ulysses 
Simpson Grant, ex-President of the United States of Amer- 
ica, to be a burgess and guild brother of the city and royal 
burgh of Glasgow, in recognition of his distinguished alDil- 
ities as a statesmen and administrator, his successful efforts 
in the noble work of emancipating his country from the 
horrors of slavery, and of his great services in promoting 
commerce and amity between the United States and Great 
Britain." 

The reading of this address was received with great ap- 
plause. General Grant replied as follows : 

** I rise to thank you for the great honor that has been conferred upon 
me this day by making me a free burgess of this great city of Glasgow. 
The honor is one that I shall cherish, and I shall always remember this 
day. When I am back in my own country I will be able to refer with 
pride not only to my visit to Glasgow, but to all the different towns in 
this kingdom that I have had the pleasure and honor of visiting. (Ap- 
plause). I find that I am being made so much a citizen of Scotland, 
it will become a serious question where I shall go to vote. (Laughter 
and applause). You have railroads and other facilities for getting from 
one place to another, and I might vote frequently in Scotland by starting 
early. I do not know how you punish that crime over here ; it is a crime 
that is very often practised by people who come to our country and become 
citizens there by adoption. In fact, I think they give the majority of 
the votes. I do not refer to Scotchmen particularly, but to naturalized 
citizens. But, to speak more seriously, ladies and gentlemen, I feel the 
honor of this occasion, and I beg to thank you, ladies and gentlemen, 
for the kind expression of your audience." 

On the 14th of September the General visited Ayr, in 
the vicinity of which the poet Burns was born. The humble 
cottage in which he saw the light, the " Twa Brigs," "Al- 
loway's auld haunted Kirk," the tomb of the poet, and the 
other points of interest were each visited in their turn, the 
excursion being one of the pleasantest of the General's 
tour. The next excursion was through the picturesque re- 
gion of Lochs Lomond and Catrine, at the close of which 
General Grant and his party went to Inverary, the county- 
town of Argyleshire. Here they spent a day or two, as 
the guest of the Duke of Argyle, at his fine seat of In- 
verary Castle, which lies near the town. 

General Grant now set out on his return to England. 
His route lay through the manufacturing districts of that 



GENERAL GRANT's TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 471 

kingdom, and everywhere he was welcomed with en- 
thusiasm. He left Edinburgh on September 19th, and ar- 
rived at Newcasde on the 20th. General and Mrs. Grant 
drove direct to the Mansion House, the residence of the 
Mayor, whose guests they were. In response to the calls 
of the crowd without they appeared on the balcony, and 
were loudly cheered. In the evening they dined with the 
Mayor and two hundred invited guests. 

On Friday, the 21st, the General and his party beq-an 
their inspection of the sights of the town. Newcastle-up- 
on-Tyne lies on the north bank of theTyne, about ten miles 
above its mouth. 

The General visited the old Casde, of which the beauti- 
ful Norman chapel is still preserved. An address was pre- 
sented to the General by the Newcasde and Gateshead In- 
corporated Chamber of Commerce, in which the natural 
wealth, the manufactures and commerce of the Tyne district 
were explained. '' The various branches of the iron trade," 
the address condnued, " includes meldng the ore into pig 
iron, the manufacture of all kinds of wrought iron, rails, 
machines, ordnance, and the building of iron vessels, for 
which our river is famous. The shipment of coal from the 
town exceeds 7,109,000 tons per annum, and the number 
of vessels annually leaving the river, engaged in the coal 
trade or loaded with the produce of our manufactories, is 
larger than the number leaving any other port in the world.'-' 
General Grant replied in suitable terms to this address, 
and the party then drove to the new Tyne Swing Bridge, 
which was inspected. They then embarked on the steamer 
^' Commodore." The shipping was decorated with flags, 
and salutes from cannon and the blowing of fog and steam 
whistles made a noisy demonstration. The General took 
his position in the forward part of his boat, and bowed his 
acknowledgments as she passed along. 

On the 26th of September the General and his party 
reached Sheffield, one of the principal manufacturing cities 
of England. From the station the party drove to Cuder's 
Hall. The General was there received by the Mayor, 
Aldermen and Councillors in their robes of office. Seats 



472 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



of honor were placed for him and Mrs. Grant by the chair 
of the Mayor, who cordially welcomed the General to Shef- 
field. 

The next day, the 27th, the General and his party visited 
a number of the manufacturing establishments of Sheffield. 
In the evening there was a brilliant banquet at Cuder's 
Hall, at which speeches, complimentary to the General, 
were made. 




TOMB OF SHAKESPEARE IN THE CHURCH OF 
STRATFORD-ON-AVON. 

The next morning, September 28, the party left Sheffield 
for Stratford-on-Avon, which place was reached at eleven 
o'clock. The General and his companions were met at the 
station by the Mayor, and were driven to the beautiful 
Gardens, through which they strolled. Then the Church 
of the Holy Cross and the Grammar School were visited. 
At the latter place they were shown the seat occupied by 
Shakespeare when a school-boy, and where he conned his 
daily task. Then followed a visit to the Shakespeare Me- 




(473) 



474 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

morial, after which the party repaired to the Church of the 
Holy Trinity, in which Shakespeare is buried. The house 
in which he was born was also visited. It is now a Museum, 
and is filled with interesting relics of the immortal bard. 
An excursion was also made to the cottage of Anne Hath- 
away, whom Shakespeare married when he was but eighteen 
years of age, and which lies about a mile distant from the 
town. An address was presented to him in a casket made 
of the wood of a mulberry tree planted by Shakespeare. 

On the 29th the General and his party left Stratford for 
Leamington, one of the prettiest and most noted watering- 
places of England. 

Upon the arrival of the train the General and his party 
found the town decorated with flags, and w^ith a triumphal 
arch, bearing the inscription, " Welcome to the Royal 
Borough." The General was received by a guard of 
honor of the Leamington Volunteers. The Mayor de- 
livered a complimentary address of welcome, which was 
cordially replied to by General Grant. The sights of the 
town were then visited, and excursions were made to Kenil- 
worth and Warwick Castles. 

General and Mrs. Grant now brought their journey 
through the midland counties to a close, and hastening to 
Southampton, spent some days with their daughter, Mrs. 
Sartoris. 

On the loth of October General Grant went to Birming- 
ham, in compliance with a promise made some time before 
to visit that city. He was met by the Mayor and city 
authorities, and was conducted to the Town Hall, where he 
was presented with addresses from the City Corporation, 
the Workingmen and the Midland International Arbitration 
Union. The Mayor delivered an eloquent speech of wel- 
come, which was responded to by General Grant, who also 
replied in suitable terms to the other addresses. After 
these ceremonies the General visited the Free Library, the 
Art Gallery and several otlicr places of interest, and then 
went to the residence of Mr. Chamberlain, Member of Par- 
liament for Birmingham, whose guest he was during his. 
stay in the city. 



GENERAL GRANT's TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 475 

On the 24th of October, 1877, General Grant, accompanied 
by his wife, his son Jesse, and Mr. John Russell Young, left 
Charing Cross in a special train for Folkestone, from which 
point the passage of the Channel was to be made. A crowd of 
Americans assembled at the station to bid him farewell, 
and the train departed amid their hearty cheers. 

Just before Paris was reached General Noyes, the 
American Minister to France, General Torbert, the 
American Consul-General at Paris, and an aid-de-camp of 




GENERAL GRANT VISITS THE GARDENS OF THE PALAIS FOYAL. PARIS. 

Marshal MacMahon entered the car. The aid-de-camp, in 
the name of the President of the French Republic, wel- 
comed General Grant to France. At the depot a large 
crowd of Americans assembled to welcome him. 

General Grant remained in Paris from the 24th of Oc- 
tober until near the middle of December. 

It would not be possible to give here a detailed descrip- 
tion of all the places in Paris visited by General Grant, so 
we must content ourselves with describing a few of the 



476 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

most prominent, and with a general view of the beautiful 
city. 

On the 25th of October, the day followinor his arrival, 
General Grant made a formal visit to Marshal MacMahon, 
the President of the French Republic, and was cordially 
received by him. He was accompanied by Mrs. Grant. 
Madame MacMahon acted as interpreter upon this oc- 
casion. The Marshal said he was much gratified to make 
the acquaintance of so illustrious a soldier. He offered to 
open all the French military establishments to his inspec- 
tion, and to furnish him means of knowing everything he 
desired concerning French military affairs. General Grant 
accepted the offer with thanks. 

On the 29th of October General Noyes, the American 
Minister to France, held a reception in honor of General 
Grant at his residence in the Avenue Josephine. It was a 
very brilliant affair. 

The reception, which followed the banquet, was attended 
by President MacMahon, who wore the Grand Cordon of 
the Legion of Honor. A large number of Americans, the 
entire Diplomatic Corps, and the elite of French society 
were present at the reception. The rooms were beautifully 
decorated and the building was illuminated. 

On the 1st of November Marshal MacMahon entertained 
General Grant at a State dinner at the Elysee. It was at- 
tended by the entire Cabinet, the American Minister, and 
a brilliant company of distinguished Frenchmen, and a 
number of ladies, including Mrs. Grant and Madame Mac- 
Mahon. 

After a short trip through Southern France General 
Grant and his party went, via Marseilles and Nice, to Villa 
Franca. 

Here the General found the United States war steamer 
" Vandalia," which had been ordered by the American 
Government to convey him and his party to Egypt and 
such other places on the Mediterranean as he should desire 
to visit. 

On the 17th of December, 1S77, the "Vandalia" cast 
anchor in the harbor of Naples. 




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477 



478 



lilFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



On the following clay General Grant visited Mount Ve- 
suvlus and the ruined city of Pompeii. 
Mr. Youncr thus describes the visit: 

o 

*' We arrived at Pompeii early in the morning, considering that we had 
to ride fourteen or fifteen miles ; but the morning was cold enough to be 
giateful to our northern habits, and there was sunshine. Our coming had 
been expected, and we were welcomed by a handsome young guide, who 
talked a form of English in a rather high key, as though we were a little 
hard of hearing. This guide informed us that he had waited on General 
Sheridan when he visited Pompeii. He was a soldier, and we learned 
that the guides are all soldiers, who receive duty here as a reward for 
meritorious service. There was some comfort in seeing Pompeii accom- 
panied by a soldier, and a brave one. This especial guide was intelligent, 
bright, and well up in all concerning Pompeii. We entered the town at 
once through a gate leading through an embankment. Although Pom- 
peii, so far as excavated, is as open to the air as New York, it is sur- 
rounded by an earthen mound, resembling some of our railway embank- 
ments in America. 
Looking at it from 
the outside you might 
imagine it an em- 
bankment, and ex- 
pect to see a train of 
cars whirling along 
the surface. It is only 
when you pass up a 
stone-paved slope a 
few paces that the 
truth comes upon 
you, and you see that 
you are in the City 
of Death. You see 
before you a long, 
narrow street run- 
ning into other nar- 
row streets. You 
see quaint, curious 
houses in ruins. You 
see fragments, stat- 
ues, mounds, walK, 
You see curiously 
painted walls. You 
"see where men and 
women lived and 
how they lived — all 
silent and all dead — and there comes over you that appalling story which 
has fascinated so many generations of men— the story of the destruction 
of Pompeii and Herculaneum. 




;|,j| ,..;,po> I t rfflfftl,1Sliffipi 




47P 



480 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

*' The Italian authorities did General Grant special honor on his visit 
to Pompeii by directing that a house should be excavated. It is one of 
the special compliments paid to visitors of renown. Chairs were arranged 
for the General, iMrs. Grant, and some of us, and there quietly, in a 
room that had known Pompeiian life seventeen centuries ago, we awaited 
the signal that was to dig up the ashes that had fallen from Vesuvius that 
terrible night in August. 

'•We formed a group about the General, while the director gave the 
workmen the signal. The spades dived into the ashes, while with eager 
eyes we looked on. Nothing came of any startling import. There were 
two or three bronze ornaments, a loaf of bread wrapped in cloth, the 
grain of the bread and the fibre of the cloth as clearly marked as when 
this probable remnant of a humble meal was put aside by the careful 
housewife's hands. Beyond this and some fragments which we could not 
understand, this was all that came from the excavation of Pompeii. 
The director was evidently disappointed. He expected a skeleton at 
the very least to come out of the cruel ashes and welcome our renowned 
guest, who had come so many thousand miles to this Roman entertain- 
ment. He proposed to open another ruin, but one of our ' Vandalia ' 
friends, a very practical gentleman, remembered that it was cold and that 
he had been walking a good deal and was hungry, and when he proposed 
that, instead of excavating another ruin, we should ' excavate a beef- 
steak ' at the restaurant near the gate of the sea, there was an approval. 
The General, who had been leisurely smoking his cigar and studying the 
scene with deep interest, quietly assented, and, thanking the director for 
his courtesy, said he would give him no more trouble. So the laborers 
shouldered their shovels and mirched off to their dinner, and we formed 
in a straggling, slow procession, and marched down the street where 
Nero rode in triumph, and across the Forum, where Cicero may have 
thundered to listening thousands, and through the narrow streets, past 
the wine-shops filled with jars which contain no wine — past the baker's, 
whose loaves are no longer in demand — past the thrifty merchant's, with 
his sign warning idlers away, a warning that has been well heeded by 
generations of men — past the house of the tragic poet, whose measures 
no longer burden the multitude, and down the smooth, slippery steps that 
once led through the gate opening to the sea — steps over which fisher- 
men trailed their nets and soldiers marched in stern procession — into the 
doors of a very modern tavern. Pompeii was behind us, and a smiling^ 
Italian waiter welcomed us to wine and corn, meat and bread, olives and 
oranges. Around his wholesome board we gathered, and talked of the 
day and the many marvels we had seen." 

On the 2 2d the " Vandalia " sailed from Naples for 
Sicily, and at noon on die 23d of December dropped 
anchor in the harbor of Palermo. 

On Christmas morning the ships in the harbor were 
gayly dressed with flags and bunting in honor of the Gen- 
eral. At noon the Prefect of Palermo came on board in 



GENERAL GRANT S TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 



481 



his state barge, and was received with a salute of fifteen 
guns. He tendered to General Grant the cordial hospital- 
ities of the city; but as the duration of the General's stay 
would not permit him to accept them, they were declined 
with thanks. In the evening there v/as a pleasant dinner 
in the wardroom of the " Vandaiia," given by the officers 
of the ship in honor of General and Mrs. Grant. 

From Palermo the " Vandalia " sailed for Malta, passing 
through the Straits of Messina. The passage of the straits 




GENERAL GRANT MEETLMG THE UUlvE OF EDINBURG. 

was made by daylight, and the travellers had a fine view 
of the shores of the mainland of Italy and of Sicily. 

At noon General Grant visited the Governor-General of 
Malta. A regiment was drawn up in front of the palace 
as a euard of honor. The eovernor received the General 
and party at the door of the palace, surrounded by his 
council and a group of Maltese noblemen. 

On the following day a pleasant visit was made to the 
Duke of Edinburgh on board the "Sultan." On the 31st 
the "Vandalia" steamed out of the harbor of Valetta, and 
turned her head toward the coast of Egypt. 
3' 



CHAPTER XIV. 

General Grant and Party arrive at Alexandria, Egypt— Leaving of the " Vandalia" — Amval 
at Cairo — Meeting Stanley— A Visit to the Khedive — Up the Nile — Brugsch Bey — 
Abydos — Tebes — Luxor — Karnak — Memphis — Port Said — Palestine — Constantino- 
ple — Athens — Corinth — Syracuse — Rome — General Grant visits King Umberto — 
Call of Cardinal McCloskey — The St. Peter's Cathedral — General Grant at Florence, 
Venice, Milan, Genoa — Return to Paris — Visits the International Exhibition — Hol- 
land — The Cleanest Town in the World — General Grant leaves for Germany. 

On the 5th of January, 1878, the coast of Egpyt was 
sighted, and on the same day the " Vandaha" cast anchor 
in the harbor of Alexandria. 

The "Vandaha" had hardly anchored in the harbor of 
Alexandria, when the governor of the district, the admiral 
and the generals, pachas and beys, the consul-general and 
the missionaries all came on board. The receptions lasted 
an hour; and as each officer was saluted according to his 
rank, and the salutes were returned, there was smoke 
enough in the air for a naval engagement, and we could 
almost fancy another batde of the Nile like that fought 
only a short distance up the coast, one eventful day, nearly 
eighty years ago. The governor, in the name of the Khe- 
dive, welcomed General Grant to Egypt, and offered him a 
palace in Cairo and a special steamer up the Nile. It is 
Oriental etiquette to return calls as soon as possible, and, 
accordingly, in the afternoon, the General, accompanied by 
his son. Commander Robeson, Chief Engineer Trilley and 
Lieutenant Handy, of the navy, landed in the official barge. 
As this was an official visit, the " Vandalia " manned the 
yards and fired twenty-one guns. These salutes were 
responded to by the Egyptian vessels. A guard of honor 
received the General at the palace, and the reception was 
after the manner of the Orientals. We enter a spacious 
chamber, and are seated on a cushioned seat or divan, ac- 
cording to rank. The pacha offers the company cigarettes. 
Then compliments are exchanged, the pacha saying how 
proud Egypt is to see the illustrious stranger, and the 
General answering that he anticipates great pleasure in 
482 



-\ ■ ,\ 







BIRD'S-EYE VIEW OF EGYPT, SHOWING THE PLACES VISITED 
BY GENERAL GRANT. 

(483) 



^8 f. LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

visiting- Egypt. The pacha gives a signal, and servants 
enter, bearing little porcelain cups about as large as an 
egg, in filagree cases. This is the beverage — coffee — or, 
as was the case with this special pacha, a hot drink spiced 
with cinnamon. Then the conversation continues with 
judicious pauses, the Orientals being slow in speech and 
our General not apt to diffuse his opinions. In about five 
minutes we arise and file down-stairs in slow, solemn fash- 
ion, servants and guards saluting, and the visit is over. 

The General and Mrs. Grant went to dine, and in the 
evening we had a ball and a dinner at the house of our 
Vice-Consul, Mr. Salvage. This was an exceedingly bril- 
liant entertainment, and interesting in one respect espe- 
cially, because it was here that the General met my 
renowned friend and colleague, Henry M. Stanley, just 
fresh from the African wilderness. The General had heard 
of Stanley being in town, and had charged me to seek him 
out and ask him to come on board and dine. My letter 
missed Stanley, and we met at the consul's. Stanley sat 
on the right of the General, and they had a long conversa- 
tion upon African matters and the practical results of the 
work done by our intrepid friend. 

At three o'clock on Monday we come to Cairo. There 
is a guard, a carpet way and a group of officers and civil- 
ians. The General, looking at the group, recognizes old 
friends. " Why," he says, " there's Loring, whom I have 
not seen for thirty years;" and "There's Stone, who must 
have been dyeing his hair to make it so white." The cars 
stop, and General Stone enters, presenting the represent- 
ative of the Khedive. This officer extends the welcome of 
his highness, which General Grant accepts with thanks. 
General Loring comes in, and receives a hearty greeting 
from his old friend in early days and his enemy during the 
war. The General asks General Loring to ride with him, 
while General Stone accompanies Mrs. Grant, and so we 
drive off to the Palace of Kassr-el-Noussa — the palace 
placed at General Grant's disposal by the Khedive. 

The General dined with his family, and next day called 
on the Khedive. We reached the palace shordy after 



'''''■'■'' ''''*''''''"''''ili 







(485) 



486 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



eleven. There was a guard of honor, and the officers of 
the household were ranged on the stairs. We had scarcely 
entered when the carriage of the Khedive was announced. 
The General received the Khedive, who was accompanied 
by his secretary for foreign affairs, and welcomed him m 




GENERAL GRANT VISITS THE KHEDIVE, 

the grand saloon. The officers of the " Vandalia " were 
present, and their striking uniforms, the picturesque cos- 
tume of the Khedive and his attendants, and the splendid, 
stately decorations of the room in which they assembled 
made the group imposing. In the course of this conver- 
t».don. General Grant spoke of General Stone, now chief 



GENERAL GRANTS TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 



487 



of Staff to the Khedive. He said he had known General 
Stone from boyhood, and did not think he had his superior 
in our army; that he was a loyal and able man, and he 
was pleased to see him holding so important a command. 
The Khedive said he was very much pleased with General 
Stone; that he found him a most useful as well as a most 
able man, especially fitted to organize troops, and had 
made him a member of his privy council. At the close of 
the interview General Grant escorted the Khedive to his 
carriage. Official calls were then made upon the two sons 
of the Khedive, who at once returned the calls, and so 
ended our official duties. 

During their stay in Cairo General Grant and his party 
made the usual visit to the Pyramids. The distance from 
Cairo to the Pyramids is six 
miles in an air line, but is 
much greater by the road. 

The Khedive placed a gov- 
ernment steamer at the ser- 
vice of General Grant for 
the Nile voyage; and, after a 
few days' stay in Cairo, "on 
Wednesday, the i6th of Jan- 
uary," says Mr. Young, in his 
letter to the New York Her- 
ald, " we embarked on the 
Nile. As the hour of noon 
passed, the drawbridge opened, 
farewells were waved to the 
many kind friends who had 
Slathered on the banks, and 
we shot away from our moor- 
ings, and out into the dark 
waters of the mighty and mys- 
terious stream. 

'' We had many friends to see us off, — General Stone, 
Judge Batcheller and Judge Barringer, with their wives, 
General Loring, and others. 

" At noon the signal for our journey is given and farewells 




ISMAIL, EX-KHEDIVE OF EGYPT. 



488 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

are spoken, and we head, under full steam, for the 
equator. 

''Our party is thus composed: We have the General, his 
wife and his youngest son, Jesse, Consul-General E. E. 
Farnan, his wife, Khawasse Hassam, and three naval officers. 
The Khedive has assigned us an officer of his household, 
Sami Bey, a Circassian gentleman, educated in England. 
Sami Bey is one of the heroes of our host, and we soon 
came to like him, Moslem as he is, for his quaint, cordial, 
kindly ways. I suppose we should call Sami Bey the execu- 
tive officer of the expedition, as to him all responsibility is 
given. We have also with us, thanks to the kindness of 
the Khedive, Emile Brugsch, one of the directors of the 
Egyptian Museum. Mr. Brugsch is a German, brother to 
the chief director, who has made the antiquities of Egypt a 
study. Both were commissioners of the Egypdan De- 
partment at the Centennial Exhibidon. Mr. Brugsch 
knows every tomb and column in the land. He has 
lived for weeks in the temples and ruins, superintending 
excavations, copying inscripdons, deciphering hieroglyph- 
ics, and his presence with us is an advantage that cannot 
be overestimated, for it is given to him to point with his 
cane and unravel mystery after mystery of the marvels 
engraved on the stones and rocks, while we stand by in 
humble and Hstening wonder. "What a blank our trip 
would be without Brugsch!" said the General, one day as 
we were coming back from a ruin — a ruin as absolute and 
meaningless as the Aztec mounds in New Mexico, but 
which our fine young friend had made as luminous as a 
page in Herodotus. 

"The Nile boats seem arranged to meet any emergency 
in the way of land ; for this river is sprawling, eccentric, 
comprehensive, without any special channel — running one 
way to-day, another next day. To know the river, there- 
fore, must be something like knowing the temper of a 
whimsical woman — you must court and woo her and wait 
upon her humors. 

" On the 2 1 St of January we hauled up to the bank in the 
town of Girgeh. We found Admiral Steadman and Mr. 




(4»9; 



4go LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Davis, of Boston, moored in their dahabeeah, and they re- 
peated the same story that we heard all along the Nile, 
that they had had a good time, a splendid time — could not 
have had a better time. 

" ' Here,' said Brugsch, as we dismounted from our don- 
keys and followed him into the ruins of the temple, ' here 
we should all take off our hats, for here is the cradle, the 
fountain-head of all the civilization of the world.' This 
was a startling statement, but Brugsch is a serious gende- 
man and does not make extravagant speeches. Then he 
told us about Abydos, which lay around us in ruins. This 
was the oldest city in Egypt. It went back to Menes, the 
first of the Egyptian kings, who, according to Brugsch, 
reigned 4,500 years before Christ. It is hard to dispute a 
fact like this, and one of the party ventured to ask whether 
the civilization of China and India did not antedate, or claim 
to antedate, even Abydos. To be sure it did, but in China 
and India you have tradidons ; here are monuments. 
Here, under the sands that we are crunching with our feet, 
here first flowed forth that civilization which has streamed 
over the world. 

*' We follow Brugsch out of the chamber and from ruined 
wall to wall. TheViins are on a grand scale. Abydos is 
a temple which the Khedive is rescuing from the sand. 
The city was in its time of considerable importance, but ' 
this was ages ago, ages and ages ; so that its glory was 
dead even before Thebes began to reign. Thebes is an old 
city, and yet, I suppose, compared with Thebes, Abydos is 
as much older as one of the buried Aztec towns in Central 
America is older than New York. 

"As we stood on the elevation, talking about Egypt and 
the impressions made upon us by our journey, the scene 
was very striking. There was the ruined temple ; here 
were the gaping excavations, filled with bricks and pottery. 
Here were our party; some gathering beads and skulls and 
stones ; others having a lark with Sami Bey ; others follovv- 
ing Mrs. Grant as a body-guard as her donkey plodded his 
way along the slopes. Beyond, just beyond, were rolling 
plains of 'shining sand — shining, burning sand — and, as the. 




(490 



492 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



shrinking eye followed the plain and searched the hills, there 
was no sign of life. I have seen no scene in Egypt more 
striking than this view from the mounds of Abydos. 

" By the time we approached Thebes we were well up in 
our Rameses, and knew all about Thebes, the mighty, the 
magnificent Thebes, the city of a world's renown, of which 
we had been reading and dreaming all these years. And 
as Brugsch, leaning over the rail, talked about Thebes, we 
listened and watched through the clear air for the first sign 




ANCIENT EGYPTIAN TEMPLE VISITED BY GENERAL GRANT. 

of its glory. There were the mountains beyond, the very 
mountains of which we had read, and there was the plain. 
But where was Thebes ? We looked through our glasses 
and saw at first only the brown caverned hills, the parched 
fields and the shining sand. We looked again, and there, 
sure enough, were the colossal statues of Memnon, two 
broken pillars, so they seemed, with a clump of trees near 
them. Only the fields, the sand and the hills beyond ;^ only 
the same cluster of hovels on the shore and the two distant 



GENERAL GRANTS TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 493 

columns. This was all that remained of the city that was 
the glory of the ancient w^orld. 

" There was one, at least, in that small company whose 
imagination fell, and who could scarcely believe that so 
much splendor could only be this barren plain. But this is 
no time for moral reflections, as we are coming into the 
town of Luxor, one fragment of the old city, and on the 
shore opposite to Memnon. The population of Luxor is 
on the river-bank ; all the consulates have their flags flying. 
Right at the landing-place is a neat, three-storied stone 
building, painted white, with the American and Brazilian 
flags on the roof. 

" The town of Luxor, as it is called, is really a collection 
of houses that have fastened upon the ruins of the old 
temple. This temple is near the river, and has a fine fapade. 
It was built by Amunoph III. and Rameses II., who reigned 
between thirteen and fifteen hundred years before Christ. 
I am not very particular about the dates, because I have 
learned that a century or two does not make much differ- 
ence in writing about the Egyptian dynasties. In fact, the 
scholars themselves have not agreed upon their chronology. 
There is a fine obelisk here, the companion of the one now 
standing in the Place de la Concorde, at Paris. There is a 
statue of Rameses, of colossal size, now broken and partly 
buried in the sand. The walls are covered with inscriptions 
of the usual character — the glory of the king, his victories, 
his majesty, his devotion to the gods, and the decree of the 
gods that his name will live for millions of years. 

" In the morning we made ready for our trip to Memnon 
and the temple-home of Rameses. We had to cross the 
river, our boatmen singing their Arab music. And when 
we landed on the other shore, we had, thanks to the fore- 
thought of our consul at Thebes, a collection of stable 
donkeys, with a well-mounted horse for the General. 

"We had seen Thebes; we had even begun to grow 
weary of Thebes. There was a dinner in state which had 
to be eaten. 

" It was served in the upper chamber of the house, and 
the host sat on one side of the table, eating nothing, in a 



494 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

State of constant alarm, that made us sympathize with hhn. 
I suppose the honor of entertaining the Chief Magistrate 
of the United States, and the fear lest he might not do us 
all the honor he wished, oppressed him. The dinner was 
a stupendous affair, course after course in Oriental profu- 
sion, until we could not even pay the dishes the compliment 
of tasting them. Then came the coffee and the pipes. 
During the dinner a group of Arab minstrels came in and 
squatted on the floor. The leader of the band was blind, 
but his skill in handling his instrument was notable. It 
was a rude instrument, of the violin class, the body of it a 
cocoanut shell. He held it on the ground and played with 
a bow, very much as one w^ould play a violoncello. He 
played love-songs and narratives, and under the promptings 
of Sami Bey, went through all the grades of his art. 
" We were to see the wonder of the world in Karnak 
'* Karnak, which was not only a temple, but one in the 
series of temples which constituted Thebes, is about a half- 
mile from the river, a mile or two from the temple of Luxor. 
The front wall, or propylon, is three hundred and seventy 
feet broad, fifty feet deep, and the standing tower one hun- 
dred and forty feet high. Leading up to this main entrance 
is an avenue lined with statues and sphinxes, two hundred 
feet long. When you enter this gate you enter an open 
court-yard, two hundred and seventy-five feet by three hun- 
dred and twenty-nine. There is a corridor, or cloister, on 
either side ; in the middle a double line of columns, of which 
one only remains. You now come to another wall, or pro- 
pylon, as large as the entrance, and enter the great hall — the 
most magnificent ruin in Egypt. The steps of the door are 
forty feet by ten. The room is one hundred and seventy feet 
by three hundred and twenty-nine, and the roof was sup- 
ported by one hundred and thirty-four columns. These 
columns are all, or nearly all, standing, but the roof has 
gone. The inscriptions on them are almost as clear as 
though they had been cut yesterday, so gentle is this climate 
in its dealings with time. They celebrate the victories and 
virtues of the kings who reigned seventeen hundred years 
before Christ, and promise the kings in the name of the 




ROCK TEMPLE OF IPSAMBUL— VISITED BY GENERAL GRANT. 

(495) 



m^ 



496 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

immortal gods that their glory shall live for ages. We pass 
into a chamber very much in ruins and see an obelisk 
ninety-two feet high and eight square, — the largest in the 
world. This monument commemorates the virtues of the 
king's daughter, womanly and queenly virtues, which met 
their reward, let us hope, thirty-five centuries ago. You 
may form some idea of what the Egyptians could do in the 
way of mechanics and engineering when you know that 
this obelisk is a single block of granite ; that it was brought 
from the quarry miles and miles away. 

'* Wherever we find walls we have inscriptions. The in- 
scriptions are in hieroglyphic language — a language as 
clear to scholars now as the Latin or the Sanskrit. Brugrsch 
reads them off to us as glibly as though he were reading 
signs from a Broadw^ay store. The stories will hardly bear 
repetition, for they are the same that we saw at Dendoreh, 
at Abydos, all through Egypt. They tell of battles and the 
glory of the king Rameses, who is supposed to be the 
Sesostris of the Greeks. We have him leading his men to 
attack a fortified place. Again we see him leading foot 
soldiers and putting an enemy to the sword. We have him 
leading his captives as an offering to the gods — and offer- 
ing not only prisoners, but booty of great value. The 
groups of prisoners are rudely done, but you see the type 
of race clearly outlined. We knew the Hebrew by the 
unmistakable cast of features — as marked as the face of 
Lord Beaconsfield. We trace the Phoenician, the Etruscan, 
as well as the negro types from Ethiopia, and thus learn of 
the warlike achievements of this monarch, whose fame is 
carved all over Egypt, and about whose name there is an 
interesting debate. Again and again these war themes are 
repeated, one king after another reciting his conquests and 
his virtues, wars and treaties of peace. It seemed in the 
building of these temples that the intention was to make 
the walls monumental records of the achievements of vari- 
ous reiens. When the walls were covered, or a kinor wished 
to be especially gracious to the priests, or, as is more prob- 
able, desired to employ his soldiers, he would built a new 
wing, or addition, to the temple already existing, striving, if 



GENERAL GRANT'S TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 497 

possible, to make his own addition more magnificent than 
those of his predecessors. In this way came the Great 
Hall of Karnak, and in every temple we have visited this 
has been noticed. As a consequence, these stupendous, 
inconceivable ruins were not the work of one prince and 
one generation, but of many princes and many generations. 
And, as there was always something to add and always a 
new ambition coming into play, we find these temples, 
tombs, pyramids, obelisks all piled one upon the other, all 
inspired by the one sentiment and all telling the same story. 
It was because Thebes was the centre of a rich and fer- 
tile province, sheltered from an enemy by the river and 
the mountains, that she was allowed to grow from century 
to century in uninterrupted splendor. What that splendor 
must have been we cannot imagine. Here are the records 
and here are the ruins. If the records read like a tale of 
enchantment, these ruins look like the work of gods. The 
world does not show, except where we have evidences of 
the convulsions of nature, a ruin as vast as that of Karnak. 
Imagine a city covering the two banks of the Hudson, for 
six or seven miles, al) densely built, and you have an idea 
of the extent of Thebes. But this will only give you an 
idea of size. The buildings were not Broadways and Fifth 
Avenues, but temples and colossal monuments and tombs, 
the greatness of which, and the skill and patience necessary 
to build them, exciting our wonder to-day — yes, to-day, rich 
as we are with the achievements and possibilities of the 
nineteenth century. Thebes in its day must have been a 
wonder of the world, even of the ancient world which knew 
Nineveh and Babylon. To-day all that remains are a few 
villages of mud huts, a few houses in stone flying consular 
flags, a plain here and there strewed with ruins, and under 
the sands ruins even more stupendous than those we now 
see, which have not yet become manifest. 

" Assouan was to be the end of our journey, the turning- 
point of our Nile trip. 

" It was very warm when we gathered under the trees the 
next morning to make ready for our journey to Philae. 

We land and climb into the ruin. Philse is not specially 
32 



498 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



interesting as a temple after you have seen Thebes and 
Abydos. I can think of nothing useful to say about it, ex- 
cept that as a ruin it is picturesque. 

We had seen the Nile for a thousand miles from its 
mouth, with no want of either comfort or luxury, and had 
made the trip much more rapidly than is the custom; as 
Saini Bey remarked, it had been the most rapid trip he had 
ever known. Now, when there was no help for it, we 
began to wish we had seen more of Dendoreh, and had not 
been content with so hurried a visit to Karnak — Karnak, 
the grandest and most imposing ruin in the world. 

We now returned to Cairo and remained for a few days, 
making many interesting excursions and visits, and enjoy- 
ing the continued hospitality of the Khedive. 

Bidding adieu to our friends at Cairo, we started for 
Port Said. 

The *' Vandalia "' sailed from Port Said in the afternoon 
of February 9th, 1878, and the next morning the coast' of 
Palestine was in full view. The travellers were on deck 
early, and they watched every point of this famous shore 
as they steamed rapidly past it. Soon after breakfast the 
"Vandalia" hove to off Jaffa. The American Consul, Mr. 
Hardegg, came on board to welcome General Grant to 
Syria, and in a litde while the General and his party went 
ashore in the "Vandalia's" boat. Landing, they proceeded 
at once to the residence of Mr. Hardegg, in the suburbs 
of the town. 

The party set out from Jaffa in the afternoon, going up 
to Jerusalem by the road traversed by most modern trav- 
ellers. 

"We had expected to enter Jerusalem in our quiet, plain 
way, pilgrims really coming to see the Holy City, awed by 
its renowned memories. But, lo! and behold, here is an 
army with banners, and we are commanded to enter as 
conquerors, in a triumphal manner! 

" We were taken to a hotel — the only one of any size in 
the town. As I lean over the balcony, I look out upon an 
open street or market-place, where Arabs are selling fruits 
and grain, and heavy-laden peasants are bearing skins 




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(499) 



500 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

filled with water. The market-place swarms with Jews, 
Arabs, Moslems, Christians. Horsemen are prancinor 
about, while the comely younij officer in command sits 
waiting, calmly smoking- his cigarette. A group of beg- 
gars, with petitions in th^-Ir hands, crowd the door of the 
hotel, waiting the coming of the man who, having ruled 
forty millions of people, can, they believe, by a wave of 
the hand, alleviate their woes." 

General Grant reached Jerusalem on Monday, February 
nth, and remained there until the following Saturday, vis- 
iting the various points of interest, and making excursions 
to Bethlehem, Bethany and other places. 

During his stay in Jerusalem the General was the recip- 
ient of distinguished attentions at the hands of the Turkish 
authorities and the consuls. The Pacha called upon him 
in state, and expressed his sense of the honor conferred 
upon Palestine by the General's visit. The General re- 
turned this call with due ceremony. The bishops and 
patriarchs called, and blessed the General and the house 
in which he lodged. The Pacha entertained General Grant 
and his party at a state dinner, which was a very pleasant 
affair. The rest of the time was passed by the General in 
siofht-seeine. 

Leaving Jerusalem, General Grant and his party jour- 
neyed northward toward Damascus. The route lay by 
Shiloh, where the Tabernacle was set up after the conquest 
of the land by the Israelites, to Nabulus, where but a 
brief stir was made. 

From Nabulus the travellers pressed on rapidly to 
Nazareth, passing Samaria, and striking across the great 
plain of Esdraelon, the battle-field of Palestine. Distant 
views were caught of the scene of Joshua's great victory, 
of Mount Bilboa, of Jezreel, of the scene of Gideon's won- 
derful exploits, of Mount Carmel, of Little Hermon, of 
Endor, of Mount Tabor, and of Nain, the scene of the 
Saviour's miracle, and at last Nazareth was reached. 

From Nazareth the travellers proceeded to Damas- 
cus. The route lay by the Sea of Galilee, Tiberias, Lake 
Huleh, Caesarea, Philippi and Mount Hermon, from 




(50I) 



502 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

which the travellers passed oat of the Holy Land into 
Syria. 

The stay at Damascus was brief, as General Grant was 
anxious to push on and reach Constantinople. The party 
jaw the city thoroughly, however, and gready enjoyed it= 

From Damascus the party proceeded to Beyrout, the 
principal seaport of Syria, where the "Vandalia" was in 
waitino; to convey them to Constantinople. 

General Grant reached Constantinople on the 5th of 
March, 1878. He was welcomed to the city by the Amer- 
ican Minister and Consul, and by an aide-de-camp of the 
Sultan. 

Immediately upon arriving at Constantinople General 
Grant paid a formal visit to the Sultan, who received him 
most cordially, and ordered the Master of Ceremonies to 
present the General with a pair of Arabian horses from the 
Imperial stables. 

When the visit to the Turkish capital came to a close, 
the General and his party sailed for Greece. The run 
from Constandnople to the harbor of Piraeus, the port of 
Athens, was a short and pleasant one. From Pirai^us a 
short railway trip of a few miles took the party to Athens. 
General Grant was cordially welcomed by General John 
Meredith Read, the American Minister to Greece, and a 
number of Americans, and was escorted to his hotel. The 
first visit v/as naturally paid to the King, who received the 
General with endiusiasni and presented him and his party 
to the Queen. Both sovereigns and people showered atten- 
tion upon General Grant, who was obliged to decline many 
of them in consequence of the shortness of his stay. A 
grand fete was given to the General by the King and 
Queen, which was attended by the most distinguished per- 
sons of the country and by the foreign ministers. Every 
effort was made to render the visit enjoyable in the highest 
degree. 

Modern Athens owes its importance solely to the historic 
renown of the ancient city on the site of which it stands. 
It is in part a well-built city, with bright, gay streets, but in 
some of the quarters dirt and squalor prevail. Among the 




(503) 



C04 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

public buildings are the Royal Palace, a line building, three 
stories in height, the Chamber of Deputies, the Barracks, 
the Mint, the Theatre, the National Academy, the Museum 
and the Polytechnic School. Like the ancient city, modern 
Athens is built around the base of the hill of the Acropolis, 
which towers up one hundred and fifty feet above it. From 
the earliest times this rock has been the site of a fortress. 
It rises almost perpendicularly above the city, and was the 
site of the citadel and most sacred buildings of ancient 
Athens. The walls stand on the very verge of the cliff, 
and have a circumference of nearly 7,000 feet. They are 
of great antiquity, being the work of many ages — of the 
Pelagians of Themistocles, of Cymon, of Valerian, of the 
Turks, and of the Venetians. 

A visit was made to the batde-field of Marathon, and on 
the 1 8th of March the General and his party bade adieu to 
Athens and embarked once more upon their ship. A visit 
was made to Corinth, where several days were spent in 
wandering through the ruins, and then the "Vandalia" 
sailed for' Syracuse, where a brief stoppage was made to 
visit the ancient city. Then the ''Vandalia" set sail once 
more, this time for Naples, where the General and his party 
terminated their Mediterranean voyage, and taking leave 
of the ''Vandalia" and her officers, set out for Rome. 

General Grant and his party visited all the objects of in- 
terest in the city, and spent many pleasant days in examin- 
ing the wonders of ancient and modern Rome. The Eternal 
CiV was deeply interesting to the General, and he studied 
it with an eagerness and attention that showed how great 
that interest was. St. Peter's— diat grandest of all Christian 
churches — the Capitol, the Vatican, the ruined Colosseum, 
the monuments of the Caesars, and the remains of later 
glories, each and all had a charm for him. 

The General was fortunate in the dme of his arrival at 
Rome. The excitement over the election of the new Pope 
had subsided, and Leo XIII. was comfortably seated in the 
Chair of St. Peter. His Eminence, Cardinal McCloskey, 
of New York, was present in Rome at the time, and im- 
mediately upon General Grant's arrival called upon him, 



GENERAL GRANT'S TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 505 

and off-ered to secure for him any facilities he might desire 
for seemg he churches, the Vatican and the objects of 
interest under the mimediate care of the Church The 
Cardmal also arranged for an interview between Gene al 

WraTand^Mr? r'"'.'^'^°'''>"'>'' °" ^'^ '^th of S 
General and Mrs. Grant were formally presented to His 

Hohness Pope Leo XIII., who received"^ them cordiaUy! 




rf/^T AT ^^.r,"^"^ VATICAN-VISITED BY^ENERAL GR.^STT 

Se?tL'wni? P' "'f''',^ '■'" P'-esentation. A pleasant 
interview followed, and the parties separated mutually 
pleased with each other. ^ 

Immediately upon the arrival of General Grant at Rome 
he was waited upon by an aide-de-camp of King Humbert, 
wha in his sovereign's name, welcomed the General to 
-Kome, and placed at his disposal every facility he might 



506 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

desire for seeine the monuments and museums of the 
Eternal City. The General prompdy called upon the King, 
and an interestincr and cordial interview took place. On 
the I 5th of April King Humbert entertained General Grant 
at a magnificent state dinner, at which all the Italian min- 
isters were present. This was one of the most distin- 
guished honors ever conferred by an Italian sovereign upon 
a citizen of a foreign country'. 

From Rome the travellers went to Florence, the favorite 
of Italian cities with Americans, which was reached April 
20, 1878. The stay of the General and his party in this 
beautiful city was brief, but very pleasant. The authorities 
of the city showed him every attention in their power, and 
exerted themselves to make his visit a delightful one. 

From Florence General Grant and his party went to 
Venice by railway, and reached that city on the 23rd of 
April. He was met at the station by the American Consul- 
General, Mr. John Harris, and a large party of Americans. 
The city authorities were also present to welcome him to 
Venice and to offer him the hospitalities of the city. Several 
speeches of a congratulatory character were made, to which 
the General returned suitable replies, and then the travellers 
were conducted to their hotel. Three da)'s were passed in 
Venice. They were very pleasant, and, as there was much 
to see, were busy ones. 

General Grant left Venice on the 26th of April, and 
reached Milan on the 27th. He remained in that famous 
city a week. He was received at the station, upon his ar- 
rival, by the Prefect, Syndic and other city officials, and 
welcomed to the metropolis of Northern Italy. During his 
stay in Milan General Grant had a constant stream of 
American visitors. 

Paris was reached on the 7th of May, 1878, and General 
Grant proceeded direct to his hotel. The International 
Exposidon had been opened on the 3rd of May, and was 
the absorbing topic in Paris. It was decided that General 
Grant should make a formal visit to the Exposidon, and in* 
spect the American Department, and on the nth of June 
General R. C. McCormick, Commissioner-General for the 




CATHEDRAL OF MILAN— VISITED BY GENERAL GRANT. 

(507) 



.508 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

United States, called on General Grant and asked him to 
fix a time for his visit. The 17th of May, Saturday, being 
the most convenient day, was appointed. On that occasion 
General and Mrs. Grant, together with a large party of 
friends, visited the Exposition, and were received by the 
officials of the American Department and escorted through 
it. The General was much pleased with the display made 
by his countrymen. 

General Grant remained in Paris a little more than a 
month, enjoying a constant round of hospitality at the hands 
of his countrymen and of distinguished Frenchmen. It was 
during this visit that President MacMahon declared that 
*' France was honored by the presence of so illustrious a 
soldier." 

The General began to tire of Paris, however, and near 
the middle of June set out for Holland, intending to make 
a tour of Northern Europe before returning to France. 

The travellers went direct to the Hague, the capital^ of 
Holland, called by the Dutch s'Gravenhagen, where an im- 
posing reception met General Grant at the railway station. 
The General was presented to the King of the Nether- 
lands, and was cordially received by him, and, during his 
stay at the Hague, a fine review of Dutch troops was held 
in his honor. He was entertained at luncheon by his Royal 
Highness, Prince Frederick, the King's uncle, at the royal 
villa of Hins in t'Bosch, or '* The House in the Woods," 
about a mile and a half from the Hague, and the entertain- 
ment proved one of the most delightful enjoyed by the 
General during his visit abroad. 

The General's time passed pleasandy at the Hague, for 
in spite of their proverbial phlegm, the Dutch were en- 
thusiasdc over their distinguished visitor, and showered up- 
on him marks of attendon and respect. 

From the Hague General Grant went to Rotterdam, 
where he met with a cordial reception from the authorities 
and from many of his own countrymen residing there. 

During his stay in Rotterdam General Grant was enter- 
tained by the Burgomaster of the city at a grand dinner, 
which was numerously attended. Speeches were made and 



GENERAL GRANTS TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 509' 

toasts were drunk, expressing the heartiest and most unaf- 
fected friendship for General Grant and for the United 
States. It was but a ride of a few hours from Rotterdam 
to Amsterdam, to which the travellers proceeded next. 

During his stay in Amsterdam General Grant was enter- 
tained at a magnificent banquet given in his honor by fifty 
of the leading merchants of the city. It was attended by 
all the dignitaries of the city and by a brilliant company. 
It was one of the most splendid entertainments attended 
by General Grant while in Europe. A visit was made to 
the North Sea Canal in company with the directors of the 
company, and the General carefully inspected that magnifi- 
cent work. The excursion wound up with a superb colla- 
tion offered to the General by one of the directors. An- 
other excursion was to Haarlem, where the grand organ of 
the Church of St. Bavon, the largest instrument in the. 
world, was played in honor of General Grant. Another 
excursion still was to Broek, a town six miles east of Am- 
sterdam, and was of an amusing charater. This place 
contains 9,000 inhabitants, and is noted for the wealth of 
its residents, who "are principally landed proprietors or 
retired merchants, but more celebrated for the extreme 
cleanliness of its houses and streets, the attention to which 
has been carried to an absurd and ridiculous excess. The 
houses are mostly of wood, painted white and green ; the 
fronts of many of them are painted in various colors ; the 
roofs are of polished tile, and the narrow streets are paved 
with bricks or little stones set in patterns. Carriages can- 
not enter the town ; you cannot even ride your horse through 
it, but must lead him or leave him outside. The natives are 
very much like the Turks : they take off their shoes before 
entering their houses, and walk in slippers or in their stock- 
ings. Even the Emperor Alexander, when he visited Broek, 
was obliged to comply with this custom." 

Thus passed away two delightful weeks in Holland. 
General Grant would have been glad to prolong his stay, 
but he was anxious to be in Berlin during the European 
Congress, and was compelled to bid adieu to his pleasant 
Dutch friends and hasten on. 



CHAPTER XV. 

Arrival of General Grant at Berlin, the Capital of the German Empire— The European 
Congress — A Memorable Interview with Prince Bismarck— A visitto Denmark, Nor- 
way and Sweden — A visit to Russia — Interview with the Czar and Prince Gort- 
schakoff— Moscow — Warsaw — Vienna— General and Mrs. Grant dine with the Em- 
peror and Empress of Austria — Munich — Return to Paris — A Trip to Southern 
France, Spain and Portugal — Ireland— Preparations for his Indian Tour. 

General Grant and party reached Berlin on the 26th of 
June, 1878. 

General Grant was much interested in Berlin, and indus- 
triously visited its sights and places of interest. He was 
the recipient of many social attentions, and also met many 
German officers who had served under him during the 
American civil war, and who were eager to pay their re- 
spects to their old chief. 

The European Congress, for the final setdement of the 
questions arising out of the war between Russia and Turkey, 
was in session at the time of the General's visit. Most of 
the foreign representatives were known to General Grant, 
he having met them in their respective countries. Visits of 
ceremony were paid to each. As Prince Gortschakoff, the 
Russian Plenipotentiary, was too much crippled with the 
gout to make calls. General Grant called upon him, and had 
a long and pleasant interview. The Prince urged him to 
visit Russia, and assured him of a hearty and cordial recep- 
tion by the Emperor and people. 

Among the first to call to see General Grant was Prince 
Bismarck, the German Prime Minister. The General was 
absent at the time, and the visit of the Prince was repeated. 

"The Prince wears an officer's uniform, and, on taking the 
General's hand, he says, ' Glad to welcome General Grant 
to Germany.' 

"The General replied that there was no incident in his 

Germ.an tour that interested him more than this opportunity 

of meeting the Prince. Bismarck expressed surprise at 

seeing the General so young a man, but on a comparison 

(510) 




niii 11 if i! 



nil I 



'Mr 



J|!lftfii'l4 'f'' 




TOWN HALL, BERLIN— VISITED BY GENERAL GRANT. 



(511: 



512 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



ot ages it was found that Bismarck was only seven years 
the General's senior. 

"'That,' said the Prince, 'shows the value of a military 
life, for here you have the frame of a young man, while I 
feel like an old one.' 

"The General, smilinor, announced that he was at that 



I >^|ii|li,ij 



,)_^,1»HPi|^\^\ 



n 111 



I'l II 




INTERVIEW BLl VV], 



.ENER.aL gram .v.nU PivINCE lil^MVK 



period of life when he could have no higher compliment 
paid him than being called a young man. 

" One of the Prince's first questions was about General 
Sheridan. 

" 'The General and I,' said the Prince, 'were fellows-cam- 
paigners in France, and we became great friends.' 

" The General made a reference to the deliberations o( the 
Congress, and hoped that there would be a peaceful result 



GENERAL GRANTS TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 



513 



^* * That Is my hope and belief/ said the Prince. * That is 
^11 our interest in the matter. We have no business with 
the Congress whatever, and are attending to the business 
of others by calHng a Congress. But Germany wants 




PRINCE BISMARCK. 

peace, and Europe wants peace, and all our labors are to 
that end.' 

" Prince Bismarck said the Emperor was especially sorry 
that he could not In person show General Grant a review/ 
and that the Crown Prince would give him one. ' But,' 
said the Prince, ' the old gendeman is so much of a soldier 
.and so fond of his army, that nothing would give him more 
33 



5H 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



pleasure than to display it to so great a soldier as your- 
self.' 

"The General said that he had accepted the Crown Prince's 
invitation to a review for next morning, but with a smile 
continued : ' The truth Is I am more of a farmer than a 
soldier. I take little or no interest in military affairs, and, 
although I entered the army thirty-five years ago and have 
been in two wars, in Mexico as a young lieutenant, and 
later, I never went into the army without regret and never 
retired without pleasure.' 

" ' I suppose,' said the Prince, ' If you had had a large army 
At the beginning of the war it would have ended in a much 
shorter time.' 

"'We might have had no war at all,' said the General; 
' but we cannot tell. Our war had many strange features 
— there were many things which seemed odd enough at the 
time, but which now seem providential. If we had had a 
large regular army as it was then constituted, it might have 
gone w4th the South. In fact, the Southern feeling In the 
army among high officers was so strong that when the war 
broke out the army dissolved. We had no army — then we 
had to organize one. A great commander like Sherman or 
Sheridan even then might have organized an army and put 
down the rebellion In six months or a year, or, at the farthest,. 
two years. But that would have saved slavery, perhaps, 
and slavery meant the germs of new rebellion. There 
had to be an end of slavery. Then we were fighting an 
enemy with whom we could not make a peace. We had 
to destroy him. No convention, no treaty was possible — - 
only destruction.' 

" ' It was a long war,' said the Prince, ' and a great work 
well done — and I suppose It means a long peace.' 

" * I believe so,' said the General. 

" The Prince asked the General when he might have the 
pleasure of seeing Mrs. Grant. The General answered 
that she would receive him at any convenient hour. 

"'Then,' said the Prince, 'I will come to-morrow before 
the Congress meets.' 

" Both genriemen arose, and the General renewed the 



i 



GENERAL GRANT's TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 515 

expression of his pleasure at having seen a man who was 
so well known and so highly esteemed in America. 

" ' General,' answered the Prince, ' the pleasure and the 
honor are mirve. Germany and America have always been 
in such friendly relationship that nothing delights us more 
than to meet Americans, and especially an American who 
has done so much for his country, and whose name is so 
much honored in Germany as your own.' 

'' The Prince and the General walked side by side to the 
door, and after shaking hands the General passed into the 
square. The guard presented arms, the General lit a fresh 
cigar, and slowly strolled home. 

" ' I am glad I have seen Bismarck,' the General remarked. 
* He is a man whose manner and bearing fully justify the 
opinions one forms of him.' " 

The next morning, at half-past seven. General Grant 
attended a review given in his honor by the Crown Prince. 
A furious rain was driving across the field at the time, but, 
notwithstanding this, the manoeuvres were brilliantly exe- 
cuted, all the branches of the service taking part in the 
display. After the review, the General inspected one of 
the military hospitals and the quarters of a cavalry regi- 
ment. This was followed by an informal mess-room lunch 
with the Crown Prince and his officers, during which the 
General expressed his gratification at the spectacle he had 
witnessed, and proposed the health of the Crown Prince. 

About noon on the same day, Prince Bismarck returned 
General Grant's visit, and was presented to Mrs. Grant. 
The visit proved exceedingly pleasant to all parties. 

Prince Bismarck entertained General Grant at a grand 
dinner at the Radziwill Palace. After dinner the Prince 
and General Grant adjourned to a cozy apartment in the 
palace for a pleasant chat. 

Among the notable incidents of General Grant's stay in 
Berlin was the dinner given to him at the American Lega- 
tion by Bayard Taylor, the American Minister, and a 
pleasant reception at the same place. They were both quiet 
and informal, but very pleasant. 

From Berlin General Grant set out for Copenhagen, 



51 6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

going- by way of Hamburg, which place was reached on the 
2d of July. 

General Grant left Hamburg on the 6th of July, and pro- 
ceeded direct to Copenhagen, travelling through Schleswig- 
Holstein and Denmark. 

There General Grant spent several very pleasant days, 
exploring every portion of it, and was so much pleased with 
the city that he would have been glad to stay longer, but 
time was pressing, and he had to depart. 

Leaving Copenhagen by steamer, the travellers sailed up 
the Cattegat to Gothenburg, in Sweden. 

From Christiana General Grant made the journey to 
Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, by rail, reaching that city 
on the 24th of July, 1878. All along the route crowds 
assembled at the stations to see and cheer the distinguished 
American General; triumphal arches were erected, and 
addresses of welcome were read at the prominent places. 
Upon the arrival of the train at Stockholm, the General 
was met by the city authorities and welcomed to Stockholm. 
An immense crowd had assembled at the station, and he 
was loudly cheered as he passed out on his way to his hotel. 

Embarking at Stockholm on board of one of the Baltic 
steamers. General Grant and his party crossed the Baltic 
Sea to St. Petersburg. The length of the voyage is about 
four hundred miles. The passage was made in about two 
days. As Cronstadt was approached, the weather cleared 
up, and the steamer put out all her flags, and in honor of 
General Grant ran up the Stars and Stripes to the fore- 
mast. As the steamer drew near the outer forts, the 
heavy granite structures were wreathed in smoke, and a 
grand salute of welcome thundered over the waves. As 
other forts were passed, salutes were fired, and at length 
the steamer came to anchor in the harbor. A deputation 
of the officials of the place came on board and welcomed 
General Grant to Russia. 

The trip to the city was a short one, and, upon arriving 
at his hotel, the General was met by Mr. E. M. Stoughton, 
the American Minister to Russia, who warmly welcomed 
him to St. Petersburg. He was followed by Prince Gort- 



i 



GENERAL GRANTS TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 517 

schakoff, the Emperor s Aide-de-Camp, and several odier 
high officers of die Imperial Court, who brought messages 
of welcome from the Emperor. This was the 30th of July, 
and it was arranged that the General should be presented 
to the Czar the next day, July 31st. 

Accordingly, the presentation took place the next day. 
The Emperor manifested great cordiality. The General 
was presented by Prince Gortschakoff. His Majesty talked 
of his health and the General's travels. He seemed greatly 




ST. PETERSBURG— REVIEW IN HONOR OF GENERAL GRANT. 

interested in our national wards, the Indians, and made 
several inquiries as to their mode of warfare. 

At the close of the interview the Emperor accompanied 
Grant to the door, saying : " Since the foundation of your 
government the relations between Russia and America 
have been of the friendliest character, and as long as I 
live nothing shall be spared to condnue that friendship." 

The General answered that although the two govern- 
ments were direcdy opposite in character, the great ma- 



5l8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

jority of the American people were in sympathy with 
Russia, and would, he hoped, so continue. 

General Grant also met the Grand Duke Alexis, who 
had visited the United States, and been entertained at the 
White House during the General's Presidency. 

An imperial yacht was placed at General Grant*s dis- 
posal, and the General and his party made a pleasant ex- 
cursion to Peterhoff — the Versailles of St. Petersburg — 
which commands a fine view of the Russian capital, Cron- 
stadt and the Gulf of Finland. After visiting Peterhoff, a 
visit was paid to the Russian man-of-war, " Peter the Great," 
where the General was saluted with twenty-one guns. 

During his stay in St. Petersburg General Grant was 
received by the Czarewitch at a special audience. The 
French Ambassador gave a dinner in his honor, and there 
was a special reviev/ of the fire brigade of the city. The 
Emperor was unfailing in his kind attentions, and caused 
everything that could be done for the comfort of General 
Grant and his party to be done with promptness and cor- 
diality. 

On the 8th of August, General Grant and party set out 
for Moscow. The distance is four hundred miles, and the 
road which unites the two places, and which is a very good 
one, was built by two American contractors, Messrs. Win- 
ans, of Baltimore, and Harrison, of Philadelphia. The road 
is also one of the straightest in existence, running in almost 
a direct line between the two points. 

The churches are numerous ; some of them are very 
elaborate, and contain many Interesting historical relics. 

A few pleasant days were passed at Moscow, and then 
General Grant determined not to return to St. Petersburg, 
but to set off direct for Warsaw, in Russian Poland, six hun- 
dred miles distant. The start was made promptly, and on 
the 13th of August Warsaw was reached. The travellers 
were very tired from their long railway journey, and sev- 
eral days were passed in the old Polish capital to rest.. 
Then the journey was resumed, and on the night of the 
1 8th of August the party reached Vienna. The General 
was met at the railroad station by Minister Kasson, the 




(519) 



520 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



secretaries and members of the American Legation, and a 
large number of the American residents. He was loudly 
cheered as he stepped out of the railway carriage. 

On the 2 1 St General and Mrs. Grant were entertained 
by the imperial family, and dined with the Emperor in the 
evening. During the morning Baron Steinberg accompa- 
nied the Emperor's American guests to the Arsenal. 

On the 2 2d Minister Kasson gave a diplomatic dinner 
in honor of our ex-President, at which nearly all the foreign 
Ambassadors were present. The members of the Austro- 
Hungarian Cabinet attended the reception in the evening, 
•and added to the brilliancy of the occasion. The General 
expressed himself greatly pleased with Vienna. He was 
gratified also at the marked attentions of the Emperor's- 
household and the earnest endeavor shown to honor him 
as a citizen of the United States. 

From Vienna the travellers went to Munich, the capital 
of Bavaria, where several days were passed in seeing the 
city and its rich art treasures. A halt was also made at 
the venerable town of Augsburg, from which place the jour- 
ney was continued through Ulm Into Switzerland. Halts 
were made at Schaffhausen and Zurich. On the 23d of 
September, Mr. S. H. Byers, the American Consul at Zur- 
ich, entertained General Grant at a dinner, at which the 
Burgomaster and the city authorities were present. From 
Zurich General Grant returned to Paris by way of Lyons. 

On the 10th of October, 1878, General Grant and party 
left Paris for a trip through Spain and Portugal. 

'Tt was the intention of General Grant when he left 
Paris," says Mr. Young, in his letter to T/ie New York 
Herald, '' to make a short visit to the Pyrenees, and espe- 
cially Pau. 

"When Vittoria was reached, there were all the authori- 
ties out to see him, and he was informed that in the 
morning the King Alfonso would meet him. Ten o'clock 
was the hour, and the place was a small city hall or palace, 
where the King resides when he comes into his capital. At 
ten the General called, and was escorted into an ante-room 
where were several aides and grenerals in attendance. He 



GENERAL GRANTS TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 52! 

passed into a small room, and was greeted by the King-. 
The room was a library, with books and a writing-table 
covered with papers, as though His Majesty had been hard 
at work. When the General entered, the King gave him 
a seat and they entered into conversation. There was a 
little fencing as to whether the conversation should be in 
English or Spanish. The General said he knew Spanish 
in Mexico, but thirty-five years had passed since it was 
familiar to him and he would not venture upon it now. 
The King was anxious to speak Spanish, but English and 
French were the only languages used. 

"At eleven o'clock General Grant, King Alfonso, and 
a splendid retinue of generals, left the King's official resi- 
dence to witness the manoeuvres which were to take place 
on the historic field of Vittoria, where the French, under 
Joseph Bonaparte and Jourdan, were finally crushed in 
Spain by the allies under Wellington on June 21, 181 3. 

'' King Alfonso and General Grant rode at the head of 
the column, side by side. His Majesty pointing out the 
objects of interest to the right and the left, and, when the 
vicinity of the famous field was reached, halting for a few 
minutes to indicate to his guest the location of the different 
armies on that famous June morning. As they proceeded 
thence General Concha was called to the side of the King 
and introduced to General Grant. Several other distin- 
guished officers were then presented. The weather was 
very fine, and the scene was one of great interest to the 
American visitor. General Grant spent the day on horse- 
back, witnessing the manoeuvres." 

In the evening he dined with the King, and the next day 
there was a grand review of the troops held in his honor. 

From Vittoria General Grant went to Madrid, reaching 
that city on the 28th of October. James Russell Lowell, 
our Minister, met him at the station, when the General was 
welcomed by Colonel Noeli, a Spanish officer of distinction, 
who was detailed to attend him. Mr. Lowell gave the 
General a dinner and a reception, where men of all parties 
came to pay their respects to the ex-President. There was 
a dinner at the Presidency of the Council, the only State 



522 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



dinner given since the poor Queen died. ^ There were 
arsenals to be inspected and picture galleries, the royal 
palace and the royal stables. There were long walks 
about Madrid and long talks with Mr. Lowell, whom 
General Grant had never met before, but for whom he 
conceived a sincere attachment and esteem. There were 
calls from all manner of public men, especially from 
Captain-General Jovellar, with whom the General had 
satisfying talks about Cuba, and one from Castelar, whom 
the General was most anxious to see. Castelar had been 
so friendly to the North in our war, and he had been also 
a constitutional President of the Republic, and the General 
was anxious to do him honor. He contemplated a dinner 
to Castelar. But Spanish polidcs is full of torpedoes, and 
the General was in som.e sort a guest of the nation, and it 
was feared that the dinner might be construed into a 
republican demonstration — an interference in other people's 
affairs — and it was abandoned. 

During his stay in Madrid General Grant visited the 
Palace of the Escurial, which is about two hours distant 
from Madrid. " This mammoth edifice, second only to the 
Pyramids of Egypt in size and solidity, was commenced by 
Philip II., to fulfil a vow made to San Lorenzo, that if the 
batde of St. Quentin, which was fought on the saint's day, 
should result favorably to him, he would erect a temple to 
his honor; and also to obey the injunctions of his father, 
the Emperor Charles V., to construct a tomb worthy of the 
royal family, and most magnificently did he carry out both 
purposes." 

From Madrid General Grant went to Lisbon, the capital 
of the kingdom of Portugal. 

" The King of Portugal, on learning that General Grant 
had arived in Lisbon, came to the city to meet him. There 
was an audience at the palace, the General and his wife 
meeting the King and Queen. The King, after greeting 
the General in the splendid audience chamber, led him into 
an inner apartment, away from the ministers and courtiers 
who were in attendance on the ceremony. They had a 
long conversation relative to Portugal and the United 



GENERAL GRANT'S TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 523 

States, the resources of the two countries, and the means 
to promote the commercial relations between Portugal and 
America. Portugal was, above all things, a commercial 
nation, and her history was a history of discovery and ex- 
tending civilization. The King had been a naval officer, 
and the conversation ran into ships of war and naval 
warfare. There were other meetings between the King 
and the General. The day after the palace reception was 
the King's birthday, and there was a gala night at the 
opera. The King and royal family came in state, and 
during the interludes the General had long conversations 
with His Majesty. The next evening there was a dinner 
at the palace in honor of the General, the Ministry, and the 
leading men of the court in attendance. 

From Lisbon General Grant returned to Spain, and pro- 
ceeded direct to Cordova. 

"After a long ride it was pleasant to rest, even in the in- 
different condition of comfort provided in a Spanish inn. 
There was a visit to the theatre, a ramble about the streets, 
which is General Grant's modern fashion of taking posses- 
sion of a town ; there was a stroll up the Roman bridge, 
the arches of which are as fresh as if the workmen had 
just laid down their tools. There was a visit to a Moorish 
mill, in which the millers were grinding wheat. There was 
the casino and the ascent of a tower from which Andalusia 
is seen spreading out before us, green and smiling. This 
sums up Cordova. 

From Cordova the travellers went to Seville, which was 
reached on December 4th, 1878. "Our stay in Seville 
was marked by an incident of a personal character worthy 
of veneration — the visit of General Grant to the Duke of 
Montpensier. The day after General Grant arrived in 
Seville the Duke called on him, and the next day was 
spent by the General and his party in the hospitable halls 
and gardens of St. Elmo. The Duke regretted that, his 
house being in mourning on account of the death of his 
daughter, Queen Mercedes, he could not give General 
Grant a more formal welcome than a quiet luncheon party. 
The Duke, the Duchess and their daughter were present, 



524 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

and after luncheon the General and Duke spent an hour 
or two strolling through the gardens, which are among the 
most beautiful in Europe. The Duke spoke a great deal 
of his relations with America, and especially of the part 
which his nephews had played in the war against the 
South." 

After leaving Seville, the route of General Grant and 
his party lay along the beautiful Guadalquiver to Cadiz, 
sixty-seven miles distant. Cadiz was reached on the 6th 
of December. 

After a short visit to Gibraltar, General Grant returned 
to Spain and journeyed direcdy north to Paris. But a 
brief stay was made in Paris, General Grant and his party 
proceeding immediately to England. He now determined 
to redeem his promise to visit Ireland, and Mrs. Grant 
decided to remain with her daughter, Mrs. Sartoris, in 
England, during the General's absence In Ireland. 

He left London by the regular mail train on January 2d, 
1879, going by way of Holyhead and Kingstown. He 
reached Dublin on January 3d, and was met by the repre- 
sentatives of the corporation. He at once prepared to 
visit the City Hall to meet the Lord Mayor. The cit)r was 
full of strangers, and much enthusiasm was manifested. 
On arriving at the Mayor's official residence they were 
cheered by a large crowd that had gathered to meet the 
illustrious ex-President. Tne Lord Mayor, In presenting 
the freedom of the city, referred to the cordiality always 
existing between America and Ireland, and hoped that in 
America General Grant would do everything he could to 
help a people who sympathize with every American move- 
ment. The parchment on which was engrossed the free- 
dom of the city was enclosed In an ancient carved bog-oak 
casket. 

General Grant appeared to be highly impressed by the 
generous language of the Lord Mayor. He replied sub- 
stantially as follows: 'T feel very proud of being made a 
citizen of the principal city of Ireland, and no honor that I 
have received has given me greater satisfaction. I am by 
birth the citizen of a country where there are more Irish- 




(525) 



520 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

men, native born or by descent, than in all Ireland. When 
in office I had the honor — and it was a great one, indeed — 
of representing more Irishmen and descendants of Irish- 
men than does Her Majesty the Queen of England. I am 
not an eloquent speaker, and can simply thank you for the 
great courtesy you have shown me." Three cheers were 
given for General Grant at the close of his remarks, and 
then three more were added for the people of the United 
States. 

In the evening General Grant was entertained by the 
city authorities at a handsome banquet. The Lord Mayor 
presided. 

On the 4th, General Grant breakfasted with the Duke 
of Marlborough, and the rest of the day was spent in stroll- 
ing about Dublin and seeing the sights of the city, and 
Sunday was passed quietly at the Shelbourne Hotel. 

On January 6th General Grant and his party left Dublin 
for Londonderry. The weather was cold and stormy; but 
in spite of this, large crowds had assembled at Dundalk, 
Omagh, Strabane and other places, and cheered the Gen- 
eral enthusiastically upon the arrival and departure of the 
train. Londonderry was reached at two o'clock. An im- 
mense crowd had assembled around the station, and Gen- 
eral Grant's arrival was hailed with a storm of cheers. 
The General was received by the Mayor in a compliment- 
ary speech of welcome, to which he replied briefly. 

The next morning was spent in exploring the sights of 
the city, and the party left for Belfast, accompanied by Sir 
Harvey Bruce, lieutenant of the county, Mr. Taylor, M. P., 
and other distinguished gentlemen. At every station 
crowds assembled to welcome and cheer General Grant, 
and among those thus assembled were many old soldiers 
who had served in the United States army under General 
Grant during our recent Civil War, and who were eager 
to greet their old commander. At Coleraine there was an 
immense crowd. General Grant, accompanied by the 
Member of Parliament, Mr. Taylor, left the cars, entered 
the waiting-room at the depot and received an address. In 
reply. General Grant repeated the hope and belief expressed 



GENERAL GRANTS TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 527 

in his Dublin speech, that the period of depression was 
ended, and that American prosperity was aiding Irish pros- 
perity. At Ballymoney there was another crowd. As the 
train neared Belfast a heavy rain began to fall. 

The train reached Belfast station at half-past two o'clock. 
The reception accorded General Grant was imposing and 
extraordinary. The linen and other mills had stopped work, 
and the workmen stood out in the rain in thousands. The 
platform of the station was covered with scarlet carpet. 
The Mayor and members of the City Council welcomed 
the General, who descended from the car amid tremendous 
cheers. Crowds ran after the carriages containing the city 
authorities and their illustrious guest, and afterward sur- 
rounded the hotel where the General was entertained. 

The public buildings were draped with American and. 
English colors. Luncheon was served at four o'clock, and 
the crowd, with undaunted valor, remained outside amid a 
heavy storm and cheered at intervals. 

The Belfast speakers made cordial allusions to many 
people in America. 

On the morning of the 8th, General Grant and his party, 
accompanied by Mayor Brown, visited several of the large 
mills and industrial establishments of the city. 

At three o'clock in the afternoon the General left for 
Dublin. Immense crowds had gathered at the hotel and 
at the railway station. The Mayor, with Sir John Preston 
and the American Consul, accompanied the General to the 
depot. As the train moved off, the crowd gave tremen- 
dous cheers, the Mayor taking the initiative. 

At Portadown, Dundalk, Drogheda and other stations 
there were immense crowds, the populations apparendy 
turning out en masse. Grant was loudly cheered, and 
thousands surrounded the car with the hope of being able 
to shake the General by the hand, all wishing him a safe 
journey. 

When the train reached Dublin, Lord Mayor Barrlngton 
and a considerable number of persons were on the plat- 
form at the railway station, and cordially welcomed the 
General. As soon as all the party had descended, the 



528 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Lord Mayor invited the General into his carriage, and 
drove him to Westward Row, where the Irish mail train 
was ready to depart, having been detained eight minutes 
for the ex-President. 

There was a most cordial farewell and a great shaking 
of hands. The Mayor and his friends begged Grant to 
return soon and make a longer stay. Soon Kingston was 
reached, and in a few minutes the party were in the special 
cabin which had been provided for them on board the mail 
steamer. Special attention was paid to the General by the 
officers of the vessel. Grant left the Irish shores at seven 
o'clock. 

London was reached on the morning of the 9th of Janu- 
ary, and the General spent the day and evening at the 
residence of Mr. John Welsh, the American Minister. 

On Monday, 13th, General Grant and his party left 
London for Paris, reaching that city the same evening. 
The season was so far advanced that an immediate depar- 
ture for India was necessary. 

The General spent a week In Paris preparing for his 
Indian voyage, and receiving many attentions at the hands 
of the authorises and citizens. On the evening of the i6th 
he was entertained by President MacMahon at a grand 
dinner at the Elysee. 

On the 2 1 St he left Paris with his party for Marseilles, to 
embark at that place for India. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

General Grant Embarks for India — On the Red Sea — Aden — Arrival at Bombay — 
Hospitalities to the General — Elephanta — Allahabad — Agra — Taj-Mahal — ^Jeypore — 
Visit to the Maharajah of Bhurtpoor — Delhi — Lucknow — Calcutta — A Visit at 
Rangoon and Bangkok — Hong Kong — Canton — Shanghai — Tientsin — Pekin — In- 
terview with the Prince Regent of the Chinese Empire, Prince Kung — Chefoo — The 
Great Wall of China — Japan — Nagasaki — Yokohama — Tokio — Japanese Hospitality 
— Grant the Guest of Japan — Received and Visited by the Emperor — Festivities — 
Departing for the United States. 

"When General Grant returned from Ireland," says Mr. 
Young, in his letter to The New York Herald, he learned 
that the American man-of-war 'Richmond,' which was to 
carry him to India, had not left the United States. The 
warm season comes early, and all the General's advices 
were to the effect that he should be out of India by the ist 
of April. He concluded not to wait for the 'Richmond,' 
and leave Marseilles for Alexandria on a steamer belonging 
to the Messagerie Maritime, and connect at Suez with the 
Peninsular and Oriental steamer. On the 24th of January, 
at noon, our party embarked at Marseilles. 

Our party, as made up for the India trip, is composed of 
General Grant, Mrs. Grant, Colonel Frederick D. Grant, 
Mr. A. E. Borie, formerly Secretary of the Navy; Dr. 
Keating, of Philadelphia, a nephew of Mr. Borie, and John 
Russell Young. 

"At nine o'clock in the morning the last farewells were 
spoken, we took our leave of the many kind and pleasant 
friends we had made on the 'Venetia,' and went on board 
the government yacht. Our landing was at the Apollo 
Bunder — the spot where the Prince of Wales landed. 

"Our home in Bombay is at the Government House, on 
Malabar Point, in the suburbs of the city. Malabar Point 
was in other days a holy place of the Hindoos. Here was 
a temple, and it was also believed that if those who sinned 
made a pilgrimage to the rocks there would be expiation 
or regenera'tion of soul." A State dinner at Malabar Point, 
closed General Grant's visit to Bombay. 
(530) 




PAGODA OF CHILLENBAUM, INDIA— VISITED BY GENERAL GRANT. 



(531) 



532 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

On the 20th the party arrived at Tatulpur, and visited 
the Marble Rocks, after which the journey was resumed to 
Allahabad, where a short stay was made. On the 2 2d of 
February General Grant left Allahabad for Agra, where he 
arrived the next day. From i\gra General Grant and his 
party went to Jeypore, to visit the Maharajah of that place, 
one of the wealthiest and most powerful of Indian Princes, 
On his return to Agra General Grant stopped at Bhurtpoor, 
to visit the Maharajah of that place. 

General Grant and his party left Agra on the ist of 
March for Delhi, at which place they arrived in the after- 
noon. ''It was early morning, and the stars were out/' 
says Mr. Young, in his letter to The New York Herald, 
''when we drove to the Agra station to take the train for 
Delhi. On the afternoon of our arrival we were taken to 
the palace, which is now used as a fort for the defence of 
the city. Leaving Delhi General Grant and his party 
reached Lucknow on the 5th of March." 

There are few .sights in India more interesting than the 
ruins of the Residency in Lucknow, where, during the 
mutiny, a handful of English residents defended themselves 
against the overwhelming forces of the Sepoys until re- 
lieved by Havelock and Sir Colin Campbell. The story ol 
that defence is one of the most brilliant in the annals of 
heroism and will always redound to the honor of the 
British name. 

On the 8th of March, General Grant and his party left 
Lucknow for Benares, arriving there at ten o'clock the 
same evening. The day had been warm and enervating, 
and our journey was through a country lacking in interest. 
"We were all dred and drowsy and not wide awake 
when the train shot into Benares station. The English 
representative of the Viceroy, Mr. Daniells, came on the 
train and welcomed the General to Benares. The General 
and Mrs. Grant, accompanied by the leading military and 
civic English representatives and nadve rajahs, walked 
down the line with uncovered heads. 

" Benares is the city of priests. Its population is less 
than two hundred thousand. Of this number from twenty 




1533) 



534 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

to twenty-five thousand are Brahmins. They govern the 
city and hold its temples, wells, shrines and streams. Pil- 
o-rims are always arriving and going, and as the day of 
General Grant's visit fell upon one of the holiest of Indian 
festivals, we found it crowded with pilgrims. Sometimes 
as many as two hundred thousand come in the course of a 
year. They come to die, to find absolution by bathing in 
the sacred waters of the Ganges. The name comes from 
a prince named Banar, who once ruled here." 

On the 9th of March, General Grant and his party left 
Benares for Calcutta, the capital of British India, and 
reached that city early on the morning of the loth, after a 
very fatiguing journey. The General drove off in the state 
carriao-e, with a small escort of cavalry, to the Govern- 
ment House, where preparations had been made by Lord 
Lytton for the reception of himself and party. 

" The Viceroy received General Grant with great kind- 
ness. Lord Lytton said he was honored in having as his 
guest a gentleman whose career he had so long followed 
with interest and respect, and that it was especially agree- 
able to him to meet one who had been chief magistrate of 
a country in which he had spent three of the happiest years 
of his life. Nothing could have been more considerate 
than the reception. The Viceroy regretted that the duties 
of his office, which, on account of Burmese and Afghan 
complications and his departure for Simla, were unusually 
pressing, prevented his seeing as much of the members of 
the General's party as he wished. In the afternoon we 
drove around the city and listened to the band. All the 
English world of Calcutta spend the cool of the day in die 
gardens, and the General and the Viceroy had a long stroll. 
It was dark before we reached the Government House, and 
we had just time to dress for a state dinner, the last to be 
given by Lord Lytton before leaving Simla. This dinner 
was made the occasion for presenting to General Grant the 
leading members of the native families. We had had a 
reception of this kind in Bombay, but the scene in Calcutta 
was more brilliant. 

The visit to Calcutta closed the Indian tour of General 



J 




(535) 



536 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Grant. "We left Calcutta at midnight, on the 17th .of 
March, In order to catch the tides in the Hoogly, on board 
the steamer 'Simla,' of the British India Navigation Com- 
pany. After a short visit at Rangoon and Bangkok, where 
he was received with high honor by the officials and the 
King of Siam, General Grant went to Singapore, and 
from there sailed to Hong Kong, in China. This place 
was reached on the 20th of April. The General was 
warmly welcomed by the United States Consul and a num- 
ber of prominent merchants and citizens. A visit was paid 
to the United States war steamer 'Ashuelot,' which was 
lying in the harbor. 

"A pleasant half-hour was spent aboard the 'Ashuelot,' 
after which we again took the steam launch and proceeded 
towards Murray pier, where preparations had been made 
to receive us. 

''As the ex-President stepped from the launch and 
mounted the red-covered stairway, the Governor came 
forward, and, warmly shaking him by the hand, welcomed 
him and Mrs. Grant to Hong Kong. 

"Several pleasant days were passed at Hong Kong, and 
then the General and his party proceeded up the river 
to Canton. 

"It was nine o'clock In the evening before we saw the 
lights of Canton. The Chinese gunboats as we came to 
an anchorage burned blue lights and fired rockets. The 
landing was decorated with Chinese lanterns, and many of 
the junks In the river burned lights and displayed the 
American flag. Mr. Lincoln, Mr. Scherzer, French Consul, 
Dr. Carson, and other representatives of the European 
colony, came on board to welcome us and to express a 
disappointment that we had not arrived in time for a public 
reception. The General and party landed without any 
ceremony and went at once to the house of Mr. Lincoln, 
where there was a late dinner. General Grant remained 
at home during the morning to receive calls, while Mrs. 
Grant and the remainder of the party wandered Into the 
city to shop and look at the curious things, and especially 
at the most curious thing of all, the city of Canton. 




A CHINESE PAGODA, AS SEEN BY GENLRAL GRANT. 

(537) 



538 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

" The coming of General Grant had created a flutter in 
the Chinese mind. No foreign barbarian of so high a rank 
had ever visited the Celestial Kingdom. Coming from 
America, a country which had always been friendly with 
China, there were no resentments to gratify, and accord- 
ingly, as soon as the Viceroy learned of th^ visit, he sent 
word to our Consul that he would receive General Grant 
with special honors. 

The Viceroy is a Chinaman, and not of the governing 
Tartar race. His manner was the perfection of courtesy 
and cordiality. He said he knew how unworthy he was of 
a visit from one so great as General Grant, but that this 
unworthiness only increased the honor. 

After General Grant had been presented, we were each 
of us in turn welcomed by the Viceroy and presented to 
his suite. Mr. Holcombe and the Chinese interpreter of 
the Consul, a blue-button Mandarin, who speaks admirable 
English, were our interpreters. 

" During this interchange of compliments the reception- 
room was filled with members and retainers of the court. 
Mandarins, aids, soldiers — all ranks were present. The 
whole scene was one of curiosity and excitement. The 
Chinamen seemed anxious to do all they could to show us 
how welcome was our coming ; but such a visit was a new 
thing, and they had no precedent for the reception of a 
stranger who had held so high a position as General Grant. 
The question of who should call first had evidently been 
much in the Viceroy's mind, for he said, apparently wdth 
the intention of assuaging any supposed feeling of annoy- 
ance that might linger in the General's mind, that, of course, 
that was not a call ; it was only the General on his way 
about the town coming in to see him. The assurance was 
certainly not necessary, and I only recall it as an illustra- 
tion of the Oriental feature of our visit. After the civilities 
were exchanged, the Viceroy led the General and party 
into another room, where there were chairs and tables 
around the room in a semi-circle. Between each couple 
of chairs was a small table, on which were cups of tea. 
The General was led to the place of honor in the centre, 



GENERAL GRANTS TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 539 

and the Chinese clustered together In one corner. After 
some persuasion, the Viceroy was induced to sit beside the 
General, and the conversation proceeded. Nothing was 
said beyond the usual compliments, which were only re- 
peated in various forms." 

The next day the Viceroy and the Chinese officials re- 
turned the visit. On the 9th of May General Grant and 
his party left Canton for Macao and Shanghai. 

From the latter place the "Ashuelot" sailed for Tientsin, 
at the mouth of the Peiho River, from which point General 
Grant intended visldng Pekin, the capital of China. His 
Excellency Li Hung Chang, by far the greatest living 
general of China, was very attendve to General Grant, 
and the General, on his part, conceived a high admiration 
for the Viceroy. 

''The great Viceroy, Li Hung Chang, took the deepest 
Interest in the coming of General Grant. He was of the 
same age as the General. They won their victories at 
the same time — the Southern rebellion ending in April, 
the Taeping rebellion in July, 1865. As the Viceroy said 
to a friend of mine, 'General Grant and I have suppressed 
the two greatest rebellions known in history.' Those who 
have studied the Taeping rebellion will not think that Li 
Hung Chang coupled himself with General Grant in a 
spirit of boasting. 

" The General formed a high opinion of the Viceroy as a 
statesman of resolute and far-seeing character. This opin- 
ion was formed after many conversations — official, cere- 
monial and personal. The visit of the Viceroy to the 
General was returned next day, May 29th, in great pomp. 
There was a marine guard from the ' Ashuelot.' We went 
to the viceregal palace in the Viceroy's yacht, and as we 
steamed up the river every foot of ground, every spot on 
the junks, was covered with people. At the landing troops 
were drawn up. A chair lined with yellow silk, such a chair 
as is only used by the Emperor, was awaiting the General. 
As far as the eye could reach the multitude stood expectant 
and gazing, and we went to the palace through a line of 
troops who stood with arms at a present. Amid the firing 




(540) 



GENERAL GRANTS TOUR AROUND THE WORED. 54I 

of guns, the beating ot gongs, our procession slowly 
marched to the palace door. The Viceroy, surrounded by 
his mandarins and attendants, welcomed the General, At 
the close of the interview the General and the Viceroy sat 
for a photograph. This picture Li-Hung Chang wished to 
preserve as a memento of the General's visit, and it was 
taken in one of the palace rooms. A day or two later there 
was a ceremonial dinner given in a temple. The dinner 
was a princely affair, containing all the best dishes of 
Chinese and European cookery, and, although the hour was 
noon, the afternoon had far gone when it came to an end." 

On the 31st of May General Grant and his party em- 
barked on the Peiho River for Pekin. 

''On the 3d day of June, shortly after midday, we saw in 
the distance the walls and towers of Pekin. We passed 
near a bridge where there had been a contest between the 
French and Chinese during the Anglo-French expedition, 
and one of the results of which was that the officer who 
commanded the French should be made a nobleman, under 
the name of the Count Palikao, and had later adventures 
in French History. As we neared the city the walls loomed 
up and seemed harsh and forbidding, built with care and 
strength as if to defend the city. We came to a gate and 
were carried through a stone arched way, and halted, so 
that a new escort could join the General's party. 

"Within an hour or two after General Grant's arrival in 
Pekin he was waited upon by the members of the Cabinet, 
who came in a body, accompanied by the military and civil 
governors of Pekin. These are the highest officials in 
China, men of grace and stately demeanor. They were 
received in Chinese fashion, seated around a table covered 
with sweetmeats, and served with tea. The first Secretary 
brought with him the card of prince Kung, the Prince 
Regent of the Empire, and said that His Imperial Highness 
had charged him to present all kind wishes to General 
Grant and to express the hope that the trip in China had 
been pleasant. The Secretary also said that as soon as 
the Prince Regent heard from the Chinese Minister in 
Paris that General Grant was coming to China, he sent 




(542) 



GENERAL GRANT's TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 545 

orders to the officials to receive him with due honor. The 
General said that he had received nodiing but honor and 
courtesy from China, and this answer pleased the Secretary, 
who said he would be happy to carry it to the Prince Regent 
"As soon as General Grant arrived at Pekin he'^was 
met by the Secretary of State, who brought the card of 
Prince Kung, and said His Imperial Highness would be 
glad to see General Grant at any time. 

"The Prince met the General the next day. He expected 
to see a uniformed person, a man of the dragon or lion 
species, who could make a great noise. What he saw was 
a quiet, middle-aged gendeman in evening dress, who had 
ridden a long way In the dust and sun, and who was look- 
ing in subdued dismay at servants who swarmed around 
him with dishes of soups and sweetmeats, dishes of bird's 
nest soup, sharks' fins, roast ducks, bamboo sprouts, and a 
teapot with a hot, insipid tipple made of rice, tasting like 
a remembrance of sherry, which was poured into small 
silver cups. We were none of us hungry. We had had 
luncheon, and we were on the programme for a special 
banquet in the evening. Here was a profuse and sumptu- 
ous entertainment. The dinner differed from those In 
Tientsin, Canton and Shanghai, in the fact that it was more 
quiet; there was no display of parade, no crowd of dusky 
servants and retainers hanging around and looking on, as 
though at a comedy. 

"There were some points In this first conversation that 
I gather up as Illustrative of the character of the Prince 
and his meedng with the General. I give them in the 
form of a dialogue: 

''General Grant— I have long desired to visit China, but 
have been too busy to do so before. I have been received 
at every point of the trip with the greatest kindness, and 
I want to thank your Imperial Highness for the manner in 
which the Chinese authorities have welcomed me. 

''Prince Kung — When we heard of your coming we were 
glad. We have long known and watched your course, and 
we have always been friends with America. America has 
never sought to oppress China, and we value very much 



GENERAL GRANT'S TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 545 

the friendship of your country and people. The Viceroy 
at Tientsin wrote of your visit to him. 

''Geiteral Grant — I had a very pleasant visit to the Vice- 
roy. He was anxious for me to visit Pekin and see you. 
I do not wish to leave Pekin without saying how much 
America values the prosperity of China. As I said to the 
Viceroy, that prosperity will be gready aided by the devel- 
opment of the country. 

''Prince Ktmg—Clnm, is not insensible to what has been 
done by other nations. 

''A Minister — China is a conservative country, an old 
Empire governed by many tradidons, and with a vast popu- 
ladon. The policy of China is not to move without 
deliberation. 

" General Grant — I think that progress in China should 
come from inside, from her own people. I am clear on 
that point. If her own people cannot do it, it will never be 
done. You do not want the foreigner to come in and put 
you in debt by lending you money and then taking your 
country. 

"The ministers all cordially assented to this proposition 
with apparent alacrity." 

During his stay at Pekin Prince Kung had an important 
interview with General Grant, in which he asked him to 
use his good offices with the government of Japan, in order 
that an honorable and peacealDle setdement of the question 
at issue between the two countries concerning the Loo 
Choo Islands mieht be had. 

From Pekin General Grant returned to Tientsin, and 
there met the "Richmond," which soon sailed for Cheefoo, 
in order to enable the General and his party to see the 
great wall of China at the point where it comes to an end 
on the sea-shore. 

From Chefoo the "Richmond" sailed direct for Naga- 
saki, in Japan. "There was no special incident in our run 
from China. On the morning of the 21st of June we found 
ourselves threading our way through beautiful islands and 
rocks rich with green, that stood like sentinels in the sea, 
and hills on which were trees and gardens, and high, com- 
35 



r46 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

manding cliffs, covered with green, and smooth, tranquil 
waters, into the Bay of Nagasaki. 

"The 'Richmond' steamed between the hills, and came 
to an anchorage. It was the early morning, and over the 
water were shadows of cool, inviting green. Nagasaki, 




nesding on her hill- 
sides, looked cosy and 
beaudful ; and, it bein 
our first glimpse of a 
Japanese town, we 
studied it through our 
glasses, studied every 
feature — the scenery, 
the picturesque attri- 
butes of the city, the terraced hills that rose beyond, 
every rood under cultivadon ; the quaint, curious houses; 
the muldtudes of flags which showed that the town 
knew of our coming and was preparing to do us 
honor. We noted, also, that the wharves were lined with 



GENERAL GRANT TAKING A MORNING WALK 
ON BOARD THE STEAMER " RICHMOND." 




(547) 



548 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

a multitude, and that the curious population were waiting^ 
to see the euest whom their nation honors and who is known 
in common speech as the American Mikado. In a short 
time the Japanese barge was seen coming, with Prince 
Dati and Mr. Yoshida and the Governor, all in the splen- 
dor of court uniforms. Prince Dati said that he had been 
commanded by the Emperor to meet General Grant on his 
landing, to welcome him in the name of His Majesty, and 
to attend upon him as the Emperor's personal represent- 
ative so long as the General remained in Japan." 

From Nagasaki the "Richmond" sailed to Yokohama, 
which was reached on the 3d of July. There was a special 
train waiting, and in the afternoon the party started for Tokio. 

"The ride to Tokio, the capital of Japan, was a little less 
than an hour, over a smooth road, and through a pleasant, 
well-cultivated and apparently prosperous country. As 
the General descended from the train a committee of the 
citizens advanced and asked to read an address, which 
was accordingly read in both Japanese and English, and to 
which General Grant made an admirable reply. The 
General's carriage drove slowly in, surrounded by cavalry, 
through line of infantry presenting arms, through a dense 
mass of people, under an arch of flowers and evergreens, 
until, amid the flourish of trumpets and the beating of 
drums, he descended at the house that had been prepared 
for his reception — the Emperor's summer palace of Eurio 
Kwan. 

" The Emperor and Empress have agreeable faces, the 
Emperor especially showing firmness and kindness. The 
solemn etiquette that pervaded the audience-chamber was 
peculiar, and might appear strange to those familiar with 
the stately but cordial manners of a European Court. But 
one must remember that the Emperor holds so high and 
so sacred a place in the traditions, the religion and the 
political system of Japan that even the ceremony of to-day 
is so far in advance of anything of the kind ever known 
in Japan that it might be called a revolution. The Em- 
peror, for instance, as our group was formed, advanced 
and shook hands with the General. 



GENERAL GRANT's TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 549 

" The first audience of General Grant with the Emperor, 
on the Fourth of July, was stately and formal. The Em- 
peror, before our return from Nikko. sent a message to 




GENERAL GRANT MEEiiim^ Tnn. EmPEROR OF JAPAN. 

the General that he desired to see him Informally. Many 
little courtesies had been exchanged between the Empress 
and Mrs. Grant, and the Emperor himself, through his no- 



550 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

blemen and Ministers, kept a constant watch over the 
General's comfort. General Grant returned answer that 
he was entirely at the pleasure of His Majesty. It was 
arranged, consequendy, that on the loth of August the 
Emperor would come to the Palace of Eurio Kwan, where 
General Grant and his party resided. On this occasion 
the conversation lasted for two hours. 

"General Grant said he would leave Japan with the 
warmest feelings of friendship toward the Emperor and 
the people. He would never cease to feel a deep interest 
in their fortunes. He thanked the Emperor for his princely 
hospitality. Taking his leave, the General and party 
strolled back to the palace, and His Majesty drove away 
to his own home in a distant part of the city. 

"There were dinners 2.x\A fetes and many pleasant par- 
ties during our stay at Eurio Kwan. 

"Among the most pleasing incidents of our last days in 
Tokio was a dinner with Sanjo, the Prime Minister, who 
entertained us in Parisian style, everything being as we 
would have found it on the Champs Elysees. 

"On Saturday, August 30th, 1879, General Grant took 
his leave of the Emperor. A farewell to the Mikado 
meant more in the eyes of General Grant than if it had 
been the ordinary leave-taking of a monarch who had 
shown him hospitality. He had received attentions from 
the sovereign and people such as had never been given. 
He had been honored not alone in his own person, but as 
the representative of his country. In many ways the visit 
of the General had taken a wide range, and what he would 
say to the Emperor would have great importance, because 
the words he uttered would go to every Japanese household. 
General Grant's habit in answering speeches and ad^ 
dresses is to speak at the moment without previous thought 
or preparation. On several occasions, when bodies of 
people made addresses to him, they sent copies in advance, 
so that he might read them and prepare a response. But 
he always declined these courtesies, saying that he would 
wait until he heard the addresses in public, and his best re- 
sponse would be what came to him on the instant. The 



GENERAL GRANT's TOUR AROUND THE WORLD. 55 1 



farewell to the Emperor 
the Cjeneral did what he 
journey. He wrote out 
making- to His Majesty, 
ply because the incident 
it showed General Grant 



was so important, however, that 
has not done before during our 

in advance the speech he proposed 
I mention this circumstance sim- 

is an exceptional one, and because 

's anxiety to say to the Emperor 




GLNLRA.L GKANFVIbTfb THE JAPANESE POriERY. 

and the people of Japan what would be most becoming in 
return for their kindness, and what would best conduce to 
good relations between the two nations. 

** At two in the afternoon the sound of the bugles and 
the tramp of the horsemen announced the arrival of the 
escort that was to accompany us to the imperial palace. 
Prince Dati and Mr. Yoshida were in readiness, and a few 



5^2 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

minutes after two the state carriages came. General and 
Mrs. Grant rode in the first carriage. On reaching the 
palace, infantry received the General with military honors. 
The Prime Minister, accompanied by the Ministers for the 
Household and Foreign Affairs, were waiting at the door 
when our party arrived. The princes of the imperial 
family were present. The meeting was not so formal as 
w^hen we came to greet the Emperor and have an audience 
of welcome. Then all the Cabinet were present, blazing 
in uniforms and decorations. Then we were strangers, 
now we are friends. On entering the audience-chamber — 
the same plain and severely-furnished room in which we 
had been received — the Emperor and Empress advanced 
and shook hands with the General and Mrs. Grant. The 
Emperor is not what you would call a graceful man, and 
his manners are those of an anxious person not precisely 
at his ease — wishing to please and make no mistake. But 
on this farewell audience he seemed more easy and natural 
than when we had seen him before. 

" The audience with the Emperor was the end of all fes- 
tivities; for, after taking leave of the head of the nation, it 
would not have been becoming in others to offer enter- 
tainments." 

General Grant and party returned to Yokohama, and 
there engaged passage on the Pacific Mail Steamer "City of 
Tokio," which sailed for San Francisco on the 3d of Sep- 
tember. 

The voyage from Japan to San Francisco was pleasant 
but uneventful. A head wind held the steamer back dur- 
ing the latter part of the voyage, but the run, on the whole, 
was enjoyable. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

HOME AGAIN. 

Arriral of the " City of Tokio " at San Francisco — Reception of General Grant— A Brilliant 
Demonstration — Honors paid to him — A Trip to the Yosemite Valley — The General's 
Visit to Portland, Oregon, Sacramento, Carson City, Virginia City — The Sutro Tunnel, 
Omaha and Burlington, Iowa — Arrival at Galena, 111. — Entliusiastic Reception at Chi- 
cago, Logansport, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Louisville Cincinnati, Pittsburgli and Phila- 
delphia — A Short Trip through the Southern States, Cuba, Mexico — Returning Home. 

The citizens of San Francisco determined to welcome 
General Grant back to his native country in the most cor- 
dial manner. 

It was half past five o'clock when a puff of white smoke 
from seaward, from the earthworks back of and above 
Fort Point, and the booming of a heavy gun announced 
that the steamer was near at hand. In a few moments the 
entrance to the harbor was veiled in wreaths of smoke, 
and as the batteries opened fire in succession the whole 
channel was soon shrouded in clouds from their rapid dis- 
charges. For some time the position of the approaching 
ship could not be discovered, but shortly before six o'clock 
the oudines of the huge hull of the ''City of Tokio" loomed 
through the obscurity of smoke and rapidly approaching 
shades of evening lit up by the flashes of guns, and in a 
few moments she glided into full view, surrounded by a 
fleet of steamers and tugs, gay with flags and crowded 
with guests, while the yacht squadron brought up the rear, 
festooned from deck to truck with brilliant bunting. Cheer 
after cheer burst from the assembled thousands as the 
vessels rounded Telegraph Hill. The United States 
steamer "Monterey," lying in the stream, added the roar of 
her guns to the general welcome, and the screaming of 
hundreds of steam whistles announced that the "City of 
Tokio" had reached her anchorage. 

The General and his party were transferred to the ferry 
steamer "Oakland," and as she reached the dock the band 
struck up " Home Aofain," and amid cheers from the crowd 

^ "* (553) 




liliillllllillililil^^ 

(554) 



HOME AGAIN. 555; 

General Grant stepped once more upon the shore of his 
native land. 

General Grant was then conducted to his carriage and 
escorted to his hotel by the grandest and most imposing- 
procession ever witnessed on the Pacific coast. 

General Grant remained several weeks on the Pacific 
coast, and while in San Francisco was the guest of the city 
and the recipient of numerous and fiattering attentions; 

On the 23d of September, General and Mrs. Grant were 
formally presented by the municipal authorities to the cit- 
izens of San Francisco. The ceremonies took place at the 
City Hall, and were elaborate and imposing. 

On the morning of the 30th of September General Grant 
and his party left San Francisco for a trip to the famous 
valley of the Yosemite. 

The Yosemite Valley was reached on the 2d of October. 
A delightful visit to the noted points of this famous Valley 
ensued, and the party returned to San Francisco on the 
8th of October. 

On the afternoon of the 9th, General Grant and his party 
sailed from San Francisco, on the steamer "St. Paul," for a 
visit to Oregon. Vancouver was reached on the 13th of 
October, at a quarter to six in the evening. 

General Grant was met at Vancouver by the Governor 
and other officers of the State of Oregon, and the journey 
was continued to Portland, which was reached on the 14th. 

While in Portland, General Grant was handsomely en- 
tertained by the State and city authorities. His visit was 
necessarily brief, and he returned to San Francisco on the 
20th of October. 

On the 2 2d of October General Grant and his party left 
San Francisco for Sacramento, which was reached at one 
o'clock in the afternoon. 

In the eveninof the General received the citizens of Sac- 
ramento at the Capitol. 

General Grant and his party returned to San Francisco 
on the 24th, reaching that city at noon, and were imme- 
diately driven to the Palace Hotel. 

On the night of the 25th, a magnificent banquet was- 



556 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

given, at the Palace Hotel, in honor of General Grant. At 
half-past eleven o'clock the Presidential party bade good- 
by, and the company took a special train for Nevada, being 
accompanied to the depot by many citizens. 

On the 29th the General and his party visited the Sutro 
tunnel. They left Virginia City at six o'clock and were 
driven in four-in-hand turnouts over a fine mountain road 
to the town of Sutro, where they arrived at eight o'clock, 
the General expressing himself as much pleased with the 
early morning drive. His welcome was emphasized by the 
ringing of bells, blowing of whistles of the company's 
work-shops and by a heavy discharge of giant powder from 
the mountain tops overlooking the town. The party were 
received at the Sutro mansion by Mrs. Adolphe Sutro, 
Superintendent H. H. Sheldon and officers of the company, 
and after an examination of the works of the company at 
the rAouth of the tunnel, and the reception of the citizens 
of the town and vicinity, a sumptuous breakfast was served. 

After returning to Virginia City, General Grant resumed 
his journey eastward in a special train. Ogden was reached 
at three o'clock on the afternoon of the 30th, and here the 
General w^as received by Governor Emery, of Utah Ter- 
ritory. A halt of only half an hour was made, and the 
General was again speeding eastward. At Cheyenne and 
Omaha there were enthusiastic receptions. Upon the ar- 
rival of the General at Omaha, a special train was sent 
from Chicago to that place by the officials of the Chicago, 
Burlington and Quincy Railroad to convey the General and 
his party further eastward. Omaha was left on the morning 
of the 3d of November. At Council Bluffs and other 
points along the route the General was received with 
enthusiasm. 

Galena, 111., the home of General Grant previous to the 
war, was reached on the 5th of November, where he was 
enthusiastically received by his neighbors and friends. 

A week's rest at his home in Galena was all that Gen- 
eral Grant permitted himself to enjoy. He had promised 
to attend the reunion of the veterans of the Army of the 
Tennessee, which was to be held at Chicago on the 12 th of 



558 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

November, and on that day he set out from Galena to fulfil 
his promise. Great preparations had been made in Chicago 
to receive him, and it was determined by the people that 
their reception to General Grant should surpass anything 
of the kind ever witnessed in this country. 

The train from Galena, containing General Grant, arrived 
at Park Row, on the south side, promptly at one o'clock. 
At this time the rain was falling heavily, but in a few min- 
utes the clouds lifted and the sun shone brightly. General 
Grant alighted with his party from the special car of Presi- 
dent Ackerman, of the Illinois Central Railroad, and took 
a seat in the carriage provided for him. 

The procession moved from Park Row north through 
Michigan Avenue to Washington Street, thence through 
Clark to Washington, thence through Franklin to Monroe, 
thence through La Salle to Madison, thence through Dear- 
born to Adams, thence through Clark to Van Buren, thence 
through State to Madison, and thence through Wabash 
Avenue until dismissed. General Grant left the procession 
at the Palmer House and reviewed it from a temporary 
balcony. 

After the review General Grant was formally welcomed 
by Mayor Harrison, who spoke in the rotunda of the Pal- 
mer House, 

On the morning of the 13th of November the Union 
Veteran Club gave a reception to General Grant at 
McVicker's Theatre. 

In a similar way General Grant was received by the citi- 
zens of Logansport, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Louisville, Cin- 
cinnati, Pittsburgh and Harrisburg. 

General Grant and his party passed the night on board 
of the special train at Harrisburg. An early start was 
made for Philadelphia, at which point the General's jour- 
ney around the world came to an end. The great city had 
made the most magnificent preparations for the reception 
of its distinguished guest, and there can be no question 
that the reception was one of the most tremendous ova- 
tions ever tendered to any man in the United States, and 
the moving column, which was more than twelve miles in 



I 




GENERAL GRANTS RECEPTION m PHILADELPHIA. 



THE PROCESSION PASSING INDErF.NDENCE HALL. 



'(559) 



560 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

length, was admirably managed. It occupied six hours in 
passing any given point. 

The point at which Mayor Stokley was waiting to receive 
General Grant was reached at twenty minutes past nine. 
The General and his friends had moved into the fourth car 
when the fifth was taken Into West Philadelphia, and In this 
car he received the Mayor. Upon entering the car. Mayor 
Stokley raised his hat and cordially grasped the extended 
hand of the ex-President, the latter holding his hat in his 
left hand. The Mayor then welcomed the distinguished 
guest to the city. 

General Grant left the train at twenty-two minutes after 
ten, accompanied by Mayor Stokley. Then followed Gov- 
ernor Hoyt, Colonel Jones, the members of the Reception 
Committee and others. There was a glad, a tumultuous 
shout of welcome as General Grant was recognized by the 
crowd. The Mayor and his guest entered a sIx-in-hand 
barouche, and drove off to take the place assigned in the 
procession, which, from daylight, had been forming on 
Broad and all the streets leadlnof into it between Market 
Street and Girard Avenue. The other members of the 
party followed in open carriages. 

Any number of columns might be written about this tri- 
umphal journey, whose itinerancy led down Broad to the 
new public buildings, thence around into Market Street, 
passing under an arch bearing the legend, — "All Honor to 
the Great Hero of the Nineteenth Century;" down Market 
to Fourth, through which the column passed to Chestnut. 
The old Independence Hall was decorated and festooned 
from the pavement to the roof, and In front was the grand 
triumphal arch spanning Chestnut Street, decorated with 
exquisite taste, and showing the motto, — " Philadelphia's 
Welcome to the Patriot and Soldier." 

Upon this archway were five hundred ladles. Far as 
the perspective effect permitted the eye to see up the street 
was a Hutterlnof forest of fla^s and streamers. 

To sum up the whole parade in one paragraph. It may 
be said that the appearance of General Grant's carriage 
was heralded blocks ahead, — to the car by the shouts of 



HOME AGAIN. 56I 

applause, and to the eye by the waving of hats and hand- 
kerchiefs. Nowhere was any disapprobation shown, but 
everywhere good humor and welcome. As his carriage 
reached the front of Independence Hall, a few moments 
before one o'clock, a round of applause greeted him, the 
bell tolled forth a salute, and this was the signal for a gen- 
eral outburst of enthusiasm all alone the line. 

General Grant remained in Philadelphia about a fortnight 
and was the recipient of the heartiest and most cordial hos- 
pitality at the hands of Its citizens. 

On the 27th General Grant, accompanied by Mrs. Grant, 
General and Mrs. Sheridan, Colonel and Mrs. Fred Grant, 
and Miss McKenna, left Philadelphia for Washington. 

Washington was reached at a little after four o'clock in 
the afternoon. Several days were spent In the National 
Capital, one of which General Grant devoted to a visit to 
the farm of his friend, General Beale, in the vicinity, where 
his Arabian horses were being kept for him. 

President Grant and party made a short trip through the 
Southern States, and finally, on the 21st, they embarked on 
the splendid new steamer "Admiral" for Havana. 

At half-past eleven o'clock on the morning of January 
22d the "Admiral" entered the harbor of Havana. On 
landing, the party entered carriages belonging to the Cap- 
tain-General and were driven to the palace, where, after 
their reception at the foot of the staircase by General Cal- 
lejas, Vice-Governor-General, and Joaquin Cirbonell, Secre- 
tary of the Government, they entered and Inspected the 
palace. 

On the 24th an official banquet was given to General 
Grant at the palace. About eighty persons were present, 
including General Callejas, the Vice-Governor-General, the 
Intendants of the Treasury and army, General Arias, Gov~ 
ernor of the Province of Havana, members of the munici- 
pality, the Bishop of Havana and other distinguished 
persons. Those of the guests who were married were 
accompanied by their ladles. 

During his stay In Cuba General Grant visited many 
points of interest in that island, and returned to i Havana 



562 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

about the ist of February. On the 2d of February he 
visited the Vento Water- Works, near Havana. On the 
night of the 3d a grand ball was given at the Vice-regal 
Palace, in honor of the American visitors. 

On the 13th of February General Grant and his party 
bade adieu to their hospitable Cuban friends, and embarked 
on the steamship "City of Alexandria" for Vera Cruz, in 
Mexico, where they were cordially received by the officials 
and citizens. From Vera Cruz they went to Orizaba, and 
a few days later to the city of Mexico. 

''Upoxi Monday, February 23d, at 1 1 a. m.. Generals Grant 
and Sheridan, with Colonel Fred Grant and their respec- 
tive ladies, repaired to the national palace for the purpose 
of an official call upon President Diaz. 

"Tuesday afternoon carriages were taken to Molino del 
Rey, which means simply 'King's Mills.' It was at the 
portal in the wall surrounding these buildings that the des- 
perate assault was made by the Americans which drove the 
Mexicans out like rats toward Chapultepec, half a mile 
away, and immortalized the spot in our national annals. 
The ancient walls plainly show the rain marks of bullets 
and of cannon-balls. A plain monument upon the crest of 
a hill eives due token of the event. It was here that Gen- 
eral Grant, then a young lieutenant, won his captaincy." 

On the evening of the 1st of March, President Diaz 
gave a grand banquet at the National Palace in honor of 
General Grant. All the members of the Cabinet and 
Diplomatic Corps, with many other persons of distinction, 
were present. After the banquet a festival took place. 
The plaza was tastefully adorned and illuminated, and was 
crowded with people. 

On the 20th of March General Grant's visit to Mexico 
came to an end. Bidding adieu to his Mexican friends at 
the capital, he travelled by railway to Vera Cruz, retracing 
the route by which he had reached the Mexican metropolis, 
and on the 20th embarked on the steamship "City of 
Mexico" for Galveston, where he was enthusiastically 
received. From there he returned North via San Antonio 
and Houston, Texas. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

GRANT IN PRIVATE LIFE. 

General Grant at Home Again— He makes New York City His Permanent Residence-* 
Mrs. Grant Presented with a Residence on Sixty-sixth Street— The Chicago Con- 
vention of 1880— The Firm of Grant & Ward— The Fund of $250,000 raised for 
General Grant— Death of the Mother of General Grant -History of the Failure of 
Grant & Ward— A Loan from William H. Vanderbilt— An Interesting Corre- 
spondence. 

General Grant's tour through the Southern States was of great 
importance to the peace and welfare of the country at large, be- 
cause it did more than any other effort heretofore made to concil- 
iate those formerly in rebellion against the government of the 
United States. Everywhere he was received with great enthusiasm 
and courtesy, especially by those who had fought against him 
during our civil war. His visits to Mexico and Cuba had been 
prompted by the desire to see established closer commercial rela- 
tions between those countries and the United States. Though not 
traveling in an official capacity, he was recognized as the repre- 
sentative of our country. It is due to General Grant that we now 
enjoy a very advantageous commercial treaty with Mexico. 

^ On his return from Mexico General Grant made New York City 
his permanent residence. His many years of service for his country 
had brought him fame enough, but only a small fortune, and the 
competence that he possessed had been greatly diminished by the 
expenses incurred during his tour around the world. As he had 
no home to call his own in that great city, his friends purchased a 
superb brown-stone mansion in Sixty-sixth Street, one door from 
Fifth Avenue, for the sum of ^100,000, and presented it to Mrs. 
Grant. There was a mortgage of ^60.000 on it, and although the 
full amount was raised, only ^40,000 were paid down on the 
delivery of the deed, and the remainder was placed to Mrs. Grant's 
credit in the bank. She made repeated efforts to raise the incum- 
brance, but as it had a long term of years to run, the holder of the 
mortgage would not discharge it. When the firm of Grant & Ward 
was started, Mrs. Grant transferred her account to the house, and 
with it the ^60,000 to pay off the mortgage on their home. That 
sum went in the crash of the firm of Grant & Ward. 

General Grant neither desired nor sought a nomination for a third 
term at the hands of the Republican National Convention, which 
met at Chicago in June, 1880. No man had more respect for the 

(563) 



5^4 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



unwritten law laid down by Washington, declaring a third term tn 
the Presidential chair inimical to the best interests of the Republic. 
The extraordinary enthusiasm which had greeted General Grant 
on his return home from his tour around the world undoubtedly 
proved the fact that he was the most popular man in the United 
States, and that no single man of any prominence in the Republi- 
can party held the affection of the masses to so high a degree as he.. 




COL. FREDERICK D. GRANT. 

This fact naturally turned the attention of the leaders of that 
party to General Grant as the most fitting candidate for the highest 
office in the gift of the people, and the one most sure to be elected. 
They were fearful of consulting him beforehand; they dreaded to 
allow him the opportunity of declining to be a candidate before the 
convention, and flattered themselves with the hope that if he were 
nominated, even against his will, they might be able to induce him 
to remain in the field. 



GRANT IN PRIVATE LIFE. 565 

Such a firm hold did this delusion have on them, that for 36 
-ballots in the convention, 306 of the delegates cast their votes for 
General Grant, and even on the decisive ballot, when General Gar- 
field was nominated, refused to make the vote unanimous, exclaim- 
ing : *' The old guard dies, but never surrenders." 

The steadfastness with which that band of three hundred and six 
had clung to their champion was subsequently commemorated by 
the striking off of medals, which were distributed to each one. 

A short time afterward the firm of Grant & Ward was 
started. As is well known, the firm later on failed, ruining its 
members financially, and many persons, who had entrusted to its 
•care their wealth as well as their savings of many years. 

On January nth, 1881, Senator Logan, of Illinois, introduced a 
bill in the U. S. Senate to place General Grant on the retired list 
with the rank and full pay of a general of the army. This bill 
did not pass at that session and friends of the general voluntarily 
raised a fund of ^^250,000, the interest of which, amounting to 
j^ 1 5,000 per annum, he was to have the use of during his life; the 
principal he could dispose of by will. 

This fund was in no sense of the word a charitable gift, but 
merely a just recognition of the invaluable services he had ren- 
dered to his country. Though all of the contributors to the fund 
were warm personal friends of the general, he had solicited 
nothing from them, had thrown out no hint or suggestion that he 
in any wise needed the gift. He was entirely ignorant of its being 
raised until it was presented to him, and it was only after a great 
deal of persuasion that he was induced to accept it. 

For the rest of that year and the next General Grant led a very 
retired life. On the iith of May, 1883, he suffered the loss of his 
mother, who died at the ripe age of eighty-four years, at the home 
of her daughter, Mrs. Corbin, at Jersey City Heights. Heaven 
had permitted her to live long enough to see honors showered on 
her son, such as no mother had ever witnessed before. 

On December 24th, of that year, a very serious accident befell 
General Grant. In the evening he left his residence for the pur- 
pose of paying a visit. The night was rainy and disagreeable, and 
the sidewalk very slippery. He passed down the steps and crossed 
to the curb, where his carriage was waiting; but just as he was 
about entering the vehicle, slipped and fell. His body struck the 
sharp end of the curb, severely bruising his side, and the weight of 
the fall caused serious injury to his thigh, which deprived him of 
all power to rise. The accident confined him to his bed for several 
weeks, and it was some months before he could leave his residence 
again 

The year 1884 was destined to be the saddest year of General 



566 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



Grant's life. On May 6th the firm of Grant & Ward closed its 
doors; and, as was subsequently ascertained, ;^I4,000,000 were 
swept away in the crash, and with it the whole of General Grant's 
fortune financially. . 

The General wished his three sons well established in business, 
and he had hoped and believed that he would do so when, in the 




ULYSSES S. GRANT, Jr. 
summer of 1880, they became partners of Ferdinand Ward in the 
banking and brokerage business. 

The firm started out with great brilliancy; and by a number of 
apparently successful operations, Mr. Ward achieved the cogno- 
men of the "Young Napoleon of Finance." Mr. James D. tish, 
President of the Marine National Bank, shortly after became a 
partner and in November of the same year General Grant himself 
asked to be admitted to the firm. Neither the General nor his sons 
had any experience in financial affairs, and trusted entirely to the 



GRANT IN PRIVATE LIFE. 567 

honor and integrity of Mr. Ward. It now appears evident that he 
carried on a number of real-estate and other speculations without 
the knowledge of the other members of the firm, and used for this 
purpose the moneys and credits of the firm, and of the Marine 
National Bank. 

The imaginary profits dwindled away into nothing; the deposits 
of trusting creditors were used to avert the inevitable, and on the 
Saturday previous to the failure the news came to the General like 
a thunder-clap, that unless a very large sum of money could be 
immediately raised, he and his family would be ruined. 

We will not attempt to picture the horror of the old warrior, 
who for sixty-two years of his life had borne his good name with- 
out a stain or reproach upon it, and who now felt that, however 
innocent, he would be made the target of the arrows of indignation 
and reproach, which would be hurled from all sides as soon as the 
terrible calamity should have happened. All night long he kept 
considering some plan of escape, and on the next day, as a last 
resource, and with but little hope in his heart, visited the residence 
of Mr. W. H. Vanderbilt, and asked that millionaire to lend him 
;^i 50,000 on his personal check. 

It is true Mr. Vanderbilt at once gave him the required sum, 
and the money was deposited in the Marine National Bank to the 
credit of the firm of Grant & Ward. But this was a mere drop in 
the bucket. It would not ward off the inevitable. On the fatal 
Tuesday the Marine National Bank closed its doors, and a few 
minutes later the firm of Grant & Ward announced its inability to 
pay its debts. 

The outburst of indignation which General Grant feared would 
be directed against him did arise, but only to change into a great 
wave of sympathy for him and his as soon as it was ascertained 
how wofully his confidence had been misplaced and abused, and to 
what a wretched strait he and his family had been reduced. 

Everything that an upright, conscientious man can do towards 
satisfying his creditors had been done by the general ; and his 
family, his respected wife, and his sons and their wives, had nobly 
aided him in these efforts. 

His debt to Mr. Vanderbilt weighed especially on his mind, 
and he did not rest satisfied until he had been permitted to con- 
fess judgment for the amount. Mr. Vanderbilt made a levy on 
the personal property, including the valuable gifts received by the 
general during his tour around the world, and the medals pre- 
sented to him, and then offered to present them to Mrs. Grant. 
At first she accepted the offer, but the general would not allow 
her to receive them ; and as the only way to satisfy the old soldier's 
fine sense of honor, Mr. Vanderbilt was finally obliged to request 



c58 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

the general to permit Mrs. Grant to remain in possession of them 
until they could be presented to the nation and preserved in the 
Smithsonian Institute at Washington. 

In this connection we publish the following correspondence, 




JESSE R. GRANT. 

which reflects credit as well on Mr. Vanderbilt as on General 

and Mrs. Grant. 

'' No. 640 Fifth Avenue, y<3;;z. 10, 1885. 

'*Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant: . 

'' Dear Madam— "^o many misrepresentations have appeared in regard 
to the loan made by me to' General Grant, and reflecting unjustly upon 
him and myself, that it seems proper to briefly recite the facts. 

'' On Sunday, the 4th of May, 1884, General Grant called at my house 
and asked me to lend him $150,000 for one day. I gave him my check 
without question, not because the transaction was business-like, but sim- 



I 



GRANT IN PRIVATE LIFE. 569 

ply because the request came from General Grant. The misfortunes 
which overwhelmed him in the next twenty-four hours aroused the sym- 
pathy and regret of the whole country. You and he sent me within a few 
days of the time, the deeds of your joint properties to cover this obligation, 
and urged my acceptance on the ground that this was the only debt of 
honor which the General had personally incurred, and these deeds I 
returned. During my absence in Europe the General delivered to my 
attorney mortgages upon all his own real estate, household effects and the 
swords, medals and works of art which were the memorials of his victories 
and the presents from governments all over the world. These securities 
were in his judgment worth the $150,000. 

'' At his solicitation the necessary steps were taken by judgment, &c., to 
reduce these properties to possession, and the articles mentioned have 
been this day bought in by me, and the amounts bid applied in reduction 
of the debt. Now, that I am at liberty to treat these things as my own, 
the disposition of the whole matter most in accord with my feelings is 
this: 

*' I present to you as your separate estate the debt and judgment I hold 
against General Grant ; also the mortgages upon his real estate and all 
the household furniture and ornaments, coupled only with the condition 
that the swords, commissions, medals, gifts from the United States, 
States, cities and foreign governments, and all articles of historical value 
and interest shall at the General's death or, if you desire it, sooner be 
presented to the government at Washington, where they will remain as 
perpetual memorials of his fame and of the history of his time. 

*' I enclose herewith assignments to you of the mortgages and judg- 
ments, a bill of sale of the personal property and a deed of trust in which 
the articles of historical interest are enumerated. A copy of this trust 
deed will, with your approval, be forwarded to the President of the 
United States for deposit in the proper department. 

"Trusting that this action will meet with your acceptance and appro- 
val, and with the kindest regards to your husband, I am yours respect- 
fully^ " W. H. Vanderbilt." 

To this General Grant replied : 

" New York City, /an. 10, 1885. 

'' Dear Sir .-—Mrs. Grant wishes me to answer your letter of this even- 
ing to say that, while she appreciates your great generosity in transferring 
to her the mortgages given to secure my debt of 8150,000, she cannot 
accept it in whole. She accepts with pleasure the trust which applies to 
articles enumerated in your letter to go to the government of the United 
States, at my death or sooner, at her option. In this matter you have 
anticipated the disposition which I had contemplated making of the 
articles. They will be delivered to the government as soon as arrange- 
ments can be made for their reception. 

"Papers relating to all other property will be returned, with the re- 
quest that you have it sold and the proceeds applied to the liquidation 
of the debt which I so justly owe you. You have stated in your letter 
with the minutest accuracy the history of the transaction which brought 




(570) 



GRANT IN PRIVATE LIFE. 5/1 

me in your debt. I have only to add that I regard your giving me your 
check for the amount without inquiry, as an act of marked and unusual 
friendship. The loan was to me personally. I got the money, as I 
believed, to carry the Marine National Bank over a day, being assured 
that the bank was solvent, but owing to unusual calls, needed assistance 
until it could call in its loans. 

'< I cannot conclude without assuring you that Mrs. Grant's inability 
to avail herself of your great kindness in no way lessens either her sense 
of obligation or my own. Yours truly, '' U. S. Grant." 

" W. H. Vanderbilt, Esq." 

Whereupon Mr. Vanderbilt wrote the following letter : 
" General U. S. Grant : " No. 640 Fifth Avenue, /.z;^. ii, 1885. 

" My Dear Sir : — On my return home last night I found your letter ia 
answer to mine to Mrs. Grant. I appreciate fully the sentiments which 
actuate both Mrs. Grant and yourself in declining the part of my propo- 
sition relating to the real estate. I greatly regret that she feels it her 
duty to make this decision, as I earnestly hoped that the spirit^ in which 
the offer was made would overcome any scruples in accepting it. But I 
must insist that I shall not be defeated in a purpose to which I have 
given so much thought, and which I have so much at heart. I will, 
therefore, as fast as the money is received from the sales of the real estate, 
deposit it in the Union Trust Company. 

" With the money thus realized, I will at once create with that company 
a trust, with the proper provisions for the income to be paid to Mrs. Grant 
during her life, and giving the power to her to make such disposition of 
the principal by her will as she may elect. Very truly yours, 

^' General U. S. Grant." " Wllliam H. Vanderbilt. 

General Grant first accepted the generous offer, as will be seen 
from the following letter : ^ew York City, 7^;/. 11, 1885. 

'' Dear Sir : — Your letter of this date is received. Mrs. Grant and I 
regret that you cannot accept our proposition to retain the property 
which was mortgaged in good faith to secure a debt of honor. But 
your generous determination compels us to no longer resist. Yours, truly, 

" W. H. Vanderbilt." " U- S. Grant." 

Finally, Mrs. Grant declined the offer of Mr. Vanderbilt by the 
following note : New York, Sunday, /^;z. ii, 1885. 

''My Dear Mr. Vanderbilt: — Upon reading your letter of this 
afternoon General Grant and myself felt that it would be ungracious 
to refuse your princely and generous offer. Hence his note to you. 
But upon reflection I find that I cannot, I will not, accept your munifi- 
cence in any form. 

I beg that you will pardon this apparent vacillation and consider this 
answer definite and final. 

With great regard and a sense of obligation that will always remain, I 
am yours very gratefully, " Julia D. Grant.'" 

"To Mr. William H. Vanderbilt. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

GENERAL GRANT'S ILLNESS. 

■Gcrtieral Grant's Trouble and Illness — His Physicians Declare it a Cancer — General 
Grant's Statement in Relation to the Failure of Grant and Ward — Not Engaged in 
Government Contracts — Ward's Methods — Grant's Opinion of his Partner — Young 
Ulysses S. Grant on Ward. 

There is no doubt, that the trouble arising from this ignominious 
failure accelerated the illness, with which General Grant was threat- 
ened for several months. A cancer, or a dangerous ulceration of 
the throat had developed itself, in spite of the best endeavors of 
the most prominent specialists of New York City to cure it. For 
a while the General was able to take a daily airing in his carriage, 
but soon he grev\^ worse, and from the beginning of the month of 
April up to the 20th anniversary of Lee's surrender at Appomattox, 
his condition was such that his life was despaired of; some of the 
bulletins issued by his physicians reading, " his death can only be 
a question of hours or days." 

One of his physicians, who makes a speciality of cancer, on the 
8th of April said : " General Grant would have been dead weeks 
ago but for the superior attendance he has had. His will power 
has done much to sustain him. He is reported to have said that 
he wanted to die. I imagine that he said this when momentarily 
depressed. But his stubbornness, the 'never licked' feeling, as Abe 
Lincoln used to say of him, forces itself to the front, and in my 
belief, he hopes against hope. It's his nature to do this, and I am 
of opinion that he couldn't help feeling so if he wanted to. Of 
course this feeling is an aid to the physicians. From my knowledge 
of cancer treatment I believe that the plan followed in his case is a 
constant moistening of the throat with gargles and liquid nourish- 
ment, thus allaying local inflammation as much as possible and 
reserving injection remedies for emergencies. 

While General Grant was lying on his death bed, the trial of 
James D. Fish, the ex- President of the Marine Bank, which went 
into bankruptcy on the same day with the firm of Grant & Ward, 
on the charges of misapplying the funds of the bank and making 
false entries on the books, was going on. It was essential to have 
the General's testimony, and on the 6th of March District-Attorney 
Root and Messrs. Smith and Clark, for the defense, went up to the 
house of General Grant, accompanied by the court stenographer, in 
•order to take his deposition, which was afterwards read to the jury. 
(572) 



GENERAL GRANTS ILLNESS. 575. 

Counsel and stenographer reached the Grant residence in Sixty- 
sixth Street about five o'clock, and were at once shown to the 
patient's sick room on the second floor. Here they found the 
General stretched out in an easy-chair, with his slippered feet in 
another chair. 

He gave his testimony from beginning to end with a seeming 
desire to tell all he knew, and without apparent exhaustion, and 
only a slight hoarseness was noticeable in an otherwise clear enun- 
ciation. At the instance and by agreement of counsel for both 
parties, the administering of the oath to the witness was waived, the 
deposition to be taken and read with the same effect as though the 
oath were administered. This complimentary action on the part of 
counsel was entirely exceptional. 

The direct examination was conducted by Counsellor Clark^ 
upon whose motion the witness was called. It ran over the entire 
connection of General Grant with the collapsed firm, and, while 
nothing of a very sensational character was brought out, there were 
many points upon which the General failed to throw any light, 
owing to his entire ignorance of the details of the business of the 
firm. 

The General at several points volunteered information which he 
thought would throw light upon some point. He did not appear in 
the least vindictive, nor did he at any time refer to Mr. Ward or to 
any one else in words showing that he cherished any feelings other 
than friendly for them. 

The taking of testimony having been completed, the party broke 
up into an informal conversation, speaking of mutual friends and 
past occurrences, but the Grant sons were mindful of the fact that 
their father's strength was waning, and cut the talking seance short 
by a proposition to adjourn to the parlors on the floor below. This 
left the old General alone with the faithful Harrison. 

A letter dated July 6, 1882, and addressed to Fish, was identified 
by General Grant as in his handwriting. He was asked by the 
counsel for the government whether this letter was an answer to 
any communication in reference to government contracts. General 
Grant replied : 

" No ; I had told Mr. Ward when it was mentioned that there 
never must be any government contracts there. There is nothing 
wrong in being engaged in government contracts more than in any- 
thing else, unless made wrong by the acts of the individual, but I 
had been President of the United States and I did not think it was 
suitable for me to have my name connected wnth government con- 
tracts, and I knew that there was no large profit in them, except by 
dishonest measures. There are some men who got government 
contracts year in and year out, and whether they managed their af- 



574 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

fairs dishonestly to make a profit or not — they are sometimes sup- 
posed to — I did not think it was any place for me." 

" And you did not find in that letter that you received any refer- 
ence to anything of that sort ? " 

'' I did not find anything of that sort or I should have stopped ; 
but, as a matter of fact, I may never have seen that letter. Mr. 
Ward may just simply have given me a statement of the contents 
of that letter when at his office." 

" Did you at any time know or understand that the firm of Grant 
& Ward had been engaged in government contracts or in furnishing 
money to be used in carrying out government contracts ? " 

General Grant drew no profits from the firm. He left his money 
there, and never got it out. He said : " Ward came up to see me 
the Sunday night before the failure, and asked me to go dov/n with 
him to see Mr. Newcomb to see if he couldn't get $150,000 from 
him ; that he had himself raised 1^230,000, and ,if he could raise 
$150,000 more, it would carry the Marine Bank through; that we 
had ^660,000 in the Marine Bank, besides ;^ 1,300,000 of securities 
in our vaults; that we should be inconvenienced very much if we 
couldn't carry the bank through, and he said the Marine Bank was 
all sound and solid if it had time to collect in or draw in a little of 
its time loans. I went down there with him, and Mr. Newcomb 
was not home, and he asked me if I knew William H. Vanderbilt 
well enough to ask him, and I, after some little hesitation, said I 
did, and Mr. Vanderbilt loaned it to me without hesitation at all. 
He said, at the rime he gave it to me, that he was lending this to 
me, and that he had no recollection of ever having done such a 
thing before, but that he would do it for me. Well, that has taken 
all the remaining property that I had." 

Ward said nothing to Grant about their debts to the Marine 
Bank. Fish never said anything to Grant expressing distrust of 
Ward, nor did he (Grant) ever suspect Ward. " I had no distrust 
of Ward the night before the failure, not the slightest; and I recol- 
lect that my son, U. S. Grant, Jr., after the failure, said that *Ferd 
would come out right yet ; he had no doubt he would come out 
right;' for he had such profound friendship for his brother. Will 
Ward, that he didn't believe it was possible for him to do a dis- 
honest act. It took me a day or two to believe it was possible 
that Ward had committed the act he had." 



CHAPTER XX. 

THE BEGINNING OF THE END. 

General Grant growing worse -Arrival of his dauglUer, Mrs. Sartoris— The General 
put on the retired list of the U. S. Army by the efforts of Mr. Samuel J. Randall 
—Bulletins issued about the health of the president— A curious dream— Fanatical 
Temperance men— Smoking not the cause of General Grant's ailment— The Medi- 
cal Record on the Case— Sympathy from all parts of the country, friend and foe— 
The 20th anniversary of Appoma'tox— The progress of Grant's illness— Improving 
— Is it cancer or ulcer ?— Opinions of prominent Physicians— The men who were 
daily visitors of the sick-room. 

During this time the disease of General Grant had made such an 
unfavorable progress that it was deemed wise to call his only daugh- 
ter, Mrs. Nellie Sartoris, who lives at Southampton, England', to 
the sick-room of her father. 

One evening, when General Grant was sitting in his bed-room, 
his ear caught the clatter of hurrying footsteps, and the sound of 
youthful voices reached him. He had been waiting for that sound 
for two days, and did not need preparation for it. Mrs. Grant 
stepped out into the hallway. There were a few joyous exclama- 
tions, and the next instant a slight figure in black, with brilliant 
cheeks and bright eyes, was in his doorway, across the room, and 
within his embrace all in an instant. It was his daughter Nellie, 
whose presence alone had been needed to make the family union 
complete. Colonel Fred. Grant and Jesse Grant followed their sis- 
ter up stairs to greet the General. They had gone off in the morn- 
ing to meet the Baltic and bring Mrs. Sartoris home, and had not 
.seen the General all day, but just then his eyes and thoughts were 
only with the loving newcomer. Little was said by either, but the 
•General showed his devotion and pleasure over her return by little 
caresses and smiles, and words of affection. Mrs. Sartoris did not 
stay in the room long. It was evidently a tax on the General to 
remain up, and although he would not admit it, she was quick to 
see it, and, pleading her own weariness, left him after a half hour. 
By 10.30 o'clock Dr. Douglas had finished his night's ministra- 
tions, and had " good reason to believe " that General Grant was 
asleep. 

Mrs. Sartoris had been met at quarantine by her three brothers, 
and they brought her to the city, with her maid and baggage, in a 
-revenue cutter. 

For several years past every recurring session of Congress Lad 

v575) 



576 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



1 



been marked by the introduction of a bill to retire General Grant 
with the rank and pay of general for life. This simple act of justice 
toward a man who has so amply deserved this recognition of his 
eminent services has heretofore always failed of becoming a law, on 
account of mean-spirited political divisions in the National Legisla- 
ture. It needed the sight of the heroic old man, stretched on the 
bed of sickness and pain, to awaken Congress to a tardy sense of its 




MRS. SARTORIS (NELLIE GRANT). 

duty, and, by the efforts of Mr. Samuel J. Randall, a well-known 
Congressman from Pennsylvania, the bill was passed on the very 
last day of the session. It was at once presented to President 
Arthur for signature, and he immediately signed it, remarking that 
never since he had become President had it given him greater 
pleasure to affix his signature to any act than to this bill. 

From all parts of the country, especially from his old comrades, 
inquiries came in relation to the health of the patient, and to avoid 



THE BEGINNING OF THE END. 



577 



answering hun- 
dreds of letters, 
and to notify the 
public of every- 
thing of any im- 
portance in con- 
nection with this 
case, daily bul- 
letins were tele- 
graphed all over 
the land and ea- 
gerly read by hun- 
dreds of thou- 
sands of Ameri- 
can citizens. Even 
from abroad many 
anxious inquiries 
were made about 
the state of health 
of General Grant, 
and the prospects 
of this unfortu- 
nate case. Nearly 
everybody with 
whom the Gen- 
eral had the slight- 
est acquaintance 
called to see him. 
First many were 
permitted to see 
the patient, but 
when his illness 
took an unfavor- 
able turn, the 
physicians inter- 
posed a veto, and 
from that time 
only his most inti- 
mate friends were 
admitted to his 
presence. 

His immediate 
family, ex-Senator 
Chaffee, Parson 
Newman, General 
Badeau and his at- 
tendants were the 
only persons who 
37 




THE RESIDENCE OP GENERAL GRANT, NEW YORK CITY- 
SHOWING THE PATIENT'S CHAMBER. 



578 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT 

were permitted to see him. On the morning of the 5th of April, 
when General Grant rubbed his eyes, looking into the faces of those 
clustered about him, he exclaimed : 

" What a funny dream ! " 

Dr. Shrady bobbed up in his chair in a second. Mrs. Sartoris was 
dumfounded for, as the doctors say, the exclamation burst as natur- 
ally from the sick man as from a school-boy. The gas was 
burning above his bed and the face of the General was fresh-look- 
ing. These favorable symptoms were noticed by the physician, and af- 
ter the General's throat had been moistened and the cancer dressed he 
was asked about his dream. He said it was too ridiculous to be 
told. His daughter, Mrs. Sartoris, begged for the story, and the 
General rested himself more comfortably in his chair and then 
said : 

*' Well, it was like this : I dreamed that I was off travelling in 
some far-away country. I had a satchel in my hand, and I was half 
undressed. I don't know what was in the satchel, but I do know 
there was no money in it nor in my pockets. I was very poor, and 
alone. I remember saying to myself that my poverty should not 
make me faint-hearted, because I had been poor so long. I jour- 
neyed along and came to a fence with a stile in it. I mounted the 
stile. I recall very well that I had an av/ful lot of trouble in 
getting over that stile, and how clumsily I climbed the steps. But 
I got over, and then to my surprise I discovered that my satchel 
was on the other side. I said to myself, ' I shall go back for my 
satchel ; I can't get along without that. Why, I don't know.' 

" I started to get it, when a gentleman appeared on the scene and 
said that I would have to pay duty on the satchel. It was on the 
other side of the line. Now, I was in a quandary. I didn't have a 
cent, and the law evidently was — no money no satchel. I con- 
cluded that there was only one way to get my satchel, and that was 
to go home and borrow the money from Mrs. Grant. I went homxC, 
and Mrs. Grant only had ^17, not sufficient to pay the duty. I was 
then in great perplexity, when suddenly I woke up, and I tell you 
frankly I was very glad I did so, for I was in a very terrible frame 
of mind." 

This was the story of the dream. Mrs. Sartoris laughed. It 
settled one point in Dr. Shrady's mind, and that was that any man 
who could remember as the General did the details of a dream, and 
tell it as easily as he did, certainly possessed all his faculties. The 
dream put the General in very good spirits, and he sat back in his 
chair composedly. Yet everyone knew that the joy which all day 
long brightened every nook and corner of the household was arti- 
ficial, and, as the doctors said, the deadly cancer was still there, and 
would accomplish its work 



THE BEGINNING OF THE END. 579 

It seems hard, after having had such a career as has General 
Grant, after conquering enemies by the thousand, to be conquered 
by so unromantic an aihnent as a cancer. But the suffering that 
this cancer has given General Grant has been a greater test of his 
heroism than he has ever had on the field of battle. It is one 
thing to ride at the head of an army, leading it on to battle, amid 
the beating of drums and the braying of trumpets, and another to 
sit quietly down in a room and await the messenger of death, amid 
the most frightful sufferings that can be inflicted upon a man. 

On the 19th day of April three weeks had elapsed since the 
physicians attending General Grant began their continuous watch. 
In that time their patient has passed through three different stages 
of a disease for which medical science has no other definition save 
epithelioma, but which certain people not directly interested in the 
case find it convenient, for the moment, to term malignant ulcera- 
tion of the throat. 

On each occasion the General was supposed to be on the brink 
of the grave. The first serious outbreak occurred just before dawn 
on the last Sunday in March, the 29th. Messengers were hastily 
dispatched for the doctors, and their timely arrival alone prevented 
a fatal termination. The last attack was occasioned by the rupture 
of a small throat artery on Tuesday morning, April 7. 

During these two days General Grant's life hung in the balance 
of a weak man's struggle against hopeless fate. That he fought 
his way through with such terrible odds against him, when each 
successful rally postponed the dreaded end apparently but a few 
hours, is at once another evidence of the wonderful vitality and 
strength of body and mind that years ago made him the first soldier 
as well as the first citizen in the land, and a tribute to the skill and 
vigilance of his medical attendants 

The improvement of General Grant and the relief from fear of 
immediate death have cleared up much which was in doubt earlier 
m the case. It has not been easy for the public to separate 
distinctly the danger which sprang from the depression into which 
Grant fell after the Grant and Ward failure and the risk arising 
from the cancerous disease whose acute and immediate form was 
a malignant ulcerated sore throat. Neither one nor the other 
would have put General Grant in immediate danger of his life. 

From the start in this case, first the four physicians in the case, Drs. 
Shrady, Douglas, Barker and Sands, while professionally unani- 
mous, have personally differed over some aspects of the case ; second, 
the physicians have kept much more closely to the ambiguous, if 
accurate, term, '' a cancerous growth," than the public has in gen- 
eral noticed ; third, there is a good deal of evidence that a change 
took place in the treatment some time ago which marked. 



2 go LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

more or less, distinctly a recognition by the physicians that the 
malignant inflammation and ulceration with which they had to do 
furnished opportunity, not merely for local treatment to assuage 
pain, but for more general remedies, directed to a wider purpose, a 
treatment not inconsistent with the presence of cancer. 

Although much has been said with reference to the physicians 
and the members of General Grant's family, and although the doctors 
have spent almost all their days in New York, yet it would be safe 
to say that their faces would not be recognized by one out of every 
thousand persons on Broadway. Whatever may be General Grant's 
illness, it is certain that, on that Thursday morning when for the 
first time brandy was used, Dr. Shrady snatched the soldier from his 
grave, and thus on the tidal-wave of public opinion the two physi- 
cians,' Drs. Shrady and Douglas, have risen to the summit of medi- 
cal fame. Therefore a slight description of these two clever practi- 
tioners may not be out of place. Dr. Douglas has been with Gen- 
eral Grant almost continuously for nearly six months. Day and 
night he has been in the sick-room, and the bond of sympathy 
which has been forged makes him very dear to the General and to 
his wife and children. The doctor resides in charming apartments 
on Fifty-ninth Street, and in his medical home he likes best to be 
among his books. He is far advanced in life. The ceaseless months 
of watching have done much to whiten the long silver beard that 
falls over his breast and to dim his kindly gray eyes. His carriage 
is quite erect. When he speaks he does so thoughtfully, giving one 
the impression that he thinks first what questions will be asked him 
next. A bit of history (which, by the way, was not intended for 
the public) will illustrate his nature. The other day his carriage 
was at the door, and a gentleman of the press asked him some 
questions concerning his patient. 

" Step into my carriage and we will discuss the question," the 
doctor replied ; and then, later on, when the conversation turned on 
where General Grant would go in case he got better, the reporter 
said that mountain air would be beneficial to reporters, and would 
not the doctor suggest for the General a place near New York so 
the gentlemen of the press could make occasional trips to the city, 
the doctor sat back in his carriage and said very thoughtfully : 

" I shall lay the matter before the General and explain to him the 
necessity of not going so far away from the city, and that if he does 
the reporters cannot accompany him." 

The good feeling of the physician has naturally been somewhat 
ruffled at the careless way in which his opinions on the case have 
been tossed about on the newspaper sea He has been so long on 
the case that he knows every twist and turn of the disease, and 
hence when irresponsible correspondents have been filling the mind 




GENERAL GRANT TAKING HIS DAILY WALK. 



(581) 



582 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



with medical opinions as unique as the mind of man can conjure up, 
Dr. Douglas has now and again delivered very impressive opinions 
on humanity in general and far-away correspondents in particular. 

There can hardly be imagined a greater difference between two, 
men than that between Dr. Douglas and Dr. Shrady. The former's 
face is full, slightly rounded, and his neck is set on very broad shoul- 
ders. Dr. Shrady's face is long and thin. The dark little goatee 
on his chin m.akes one think unintentionally of French physicians 
who, in dramas, stand, in the gray of the morning, medicine-case in 
hand, waiting for quarreling lovers to settle their disputes at the 
points of their swords. It is a very intelligent face. The lips are 




REPORTERS WAITING TO INTERVIEW THE DOCTORS. 

tightly drawn and the mouth decisive. When the physician speaks 
you feel that he means what he says. As the editor of the Medical 
Record, Dr. Shrady has already woven many chaplets of fame. His 
principal glory must, however, come from his connection with the 
case he has now on hand. 

As to the decisiveness of Dr. Shrady, the struggle which General 
Grant waged between life and death a week ago, fully illustrates it. 
That General Grant's life was one of minutes every one present 
believed. Human power had evidently been exhausted, and not 
the gold of another Croesus or the lore of ^sculapius could keep the 



THE BEGINNING OF THE END. 583 

temperature down or calm the throbbing pulse. Dr. Shrady acted 
then with the decision that saved the life of the dying man. The 
morphia sped through the sick man's blood and the grave closed 
again. A quick intellect and a varied fund of medical knowledge 
are the characteristics of Dr. Shrady. 

The new York newspapers have set on General Grant what they 
term the death watch. He may die at any moment and may be 
alive three months hence. But whenever he does die the news- 
papers must instantly have the news ; hence some one must watch 
the house for the newspapers all the time. The chief papers have 
therefore hired a convenient room close to the Grant residence, and 
there all day and all night sit a group of reporters waiting for 
General Grant to die. They have books and a card-table and the 
daily newspapers, and whatever occurs to them may be of aid to 
help pass away the wearisome hours. They are well paid for their 
writing, and among them are some of the most trustworthy news- 
paper men in the city. It is very responsible work, and men who 
are of irregular habits are not selected for it. 

At stated hours in the day and night the Grant mansion is visited, 
and Colonel Fred. Grant tells the reporters how the General has 
passed the preceding hours. Twice a day, and just before mid- 
night, the physicians are seen, and they tell the reporters the con- 
dition of their distinguished patient. The work speedily becomes 
reduced to system, and the plan renders both the family and the 
physicians much more freedom than when the bell was rung twenty- 
five times a day by the representatives of the press in pursuit of in- 
formation. 

Probably it may not be kept open so long as was the room in 
which the reporters waited for the death of Commodore Vander- 
bilt. There the watch was kept up for just seven months, and a 
jolly time, indeed, the boys had. The room became a club-room, 
known to half the newspaper men in town, and they dropped in 
and out, and played cards and had a good tijne generally. Charles 
O'Connor, too, gave the press of New York much trouble and ex- 
pense, and ended it by getting well, instead of dying. When, years 
afterward, he did die, at Nantucket, he got a very brief notice. An- 
other notable newspaper wait was in the long absence of the jury 
in the Beecher-Tilton suit. There, too, a room was hired, and the 
newspaper men, all used it waiting for the verdict that never came. 
The chief newspapers had obituary notices of General Grant, de- 
scriptive of his last days, headings and everything save the bare 
announcement of death all set in type and made up, ready to print 
ibr several months before he died. 



CHAPTER XXI. 

GENERAL GRANT'S LAST ILLNESS. 

A brief sketch of General Grant's illness— Its first symptoms— Doctors Barker, Sands^ 
Shrady and Douglas his physicians — Grant in imminent danger of life — A subcuta- 
neous injection of brandy saves his life— Celebration of Grant's birthday— Sympa- 
thy from every part of the country — The General removed to Mt, McGregor near 
Saratoga — Failing rapidly — Not able to speak— He writes his farewell to his family, 
his friends and his physician— His last injunctions. 

The following brief sketch of General Grant's illness from the 
time of its inception, is from an authoritative source, and contains 
many details never before given to the public. 

Early in the autumn o^ 1884 General Grant was visiting at the 
house of Mr. George W. Childs, at Long Branch, and with his 
family and friends was sitting on the piazza one bright afternoon. 
In the course of conversation the General said: "I ate a peach the 
other day, and ever since I have had a sore throat." Thereupon 
he coughed considerably, and Mr. Childs suggested that he should 
allow Dr. Da Costa, of Philadelphia, who was also visiting at the 
house, to examine his throat. The Doctor did so, and decided in 
his own mind, at that time, that the case was one of epithelioma, or 
cancer of the throat. He at once advised the General to see his 
family physician as soon as he arrived in New York. 

*' Who is your family physician?" asked Dr. Da Costa. 

"Dr. Fordyce Barker," answered the General. 

"Ah! I am glad to hear that; you could not be in better hands/'' 
replied the doctor. 

The General's throat continued to get sore, and troubled him 
not a little. When he came to New York, he called upon Dr. 
Barker, and asked him to look at it, which the doctor did, and 
after prescribing for him, asked him to call upon Dr. J. H. Douglas. 

In a few days the General and Mrs. Grant called upon Dr. Doug- 
las. This was early in October, and since that time the doctor has 
been his attending physician. Dr. Douglas is a specialist in throat 
diseases. 

As far back as that time, each of these physicians, and Dr. Barker 
as well, agreed that the General had epithelioma, or cancer of the 
throat. Afterward they had a doubt as to the disease being epi- 
thelioma, and the General was put under special treatment on or 
about the 23d of October. 

During the months of November, December and January there 
(584) 



586 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

was no appreciable change for the worse, except that one day the 
General would feel very well, and the next day very much de^ 
pressed. About the middle of February an alarming change was 
noticed. 

Drs. Barker and Douglas, being unwilling to shoulder the entire 
responsibility of such an important case, decided to call some one 
else in. Dr. Barker had met in consultation, a few days before, in 
another case, Dr. Markoe; Dr. Douglas, in a similar way, had met 
Dr. Sands; and it was agreed to ask these two physicians to 
come in. 

On the 19th of February all four physicians met at the residence 
of General Grant, and looked at his throat. They decided that the 
case was epithelioma. The result of this consultation was sup- 
pressed until February 2 2d, when the newspapers gave a full ac- 
count of it. Previously Drs. Elliott and Satterthwaite had examined 
pieces of the throat under a microscope, and they, too, had decided 
that the case was epithelioma. 

The next consultation was held on March 8th. Dr. George F. 
Shrady attended this consultation. His opinion coincided with 
that of the others; but, the physicians thinking that there might 
be one chance in a thousand against their diagnosis, again placed 
General Grant under specific treatment for another disease. 

As the case went on, Drs. Barker and Sands attended only in 
consultation, the actual work devolving upon Drs. Douglas and 
Shrady. In a few days the General grew much worse. Besides 
the large ulcer in the throat, his system generally became very 
much depressed and wasted. 

During the latter part of March his life hung by a thread, and the 
whole country awaited with feelings of the greatest apprehension 
the news of each day. The doctors had now become convinced 
that the disease was cancer of the tongue solely, and that all they 
could do was to ease the General along until his inevitable death. 
They remained in the house day and night. At times the General 
became very much alarmed, and gave up all hope. There were in 
the house Drs. Shrady and Douglas. Dr. Shrady had stayed up the 
previous night alone, and was completely worn out. Dr. Douglas, 
too, being an old man, was very tired. The family were up all 
night, and with them was Dr. Newman. General Grant was very 
low all night, and in the early morning had an alarming hemorrhage. 
The family were gathered around him, every member crying. The 
General reclined in one chair, with his pillow behind him, and rested 
his feet on another chair. Dr. Shrady was sleeping in another 
room. In rushed Dr. Douglas and roused him with the word?, 
*' It's all over." 

" What ! " said Shrady, " do you mean to say that the man is dead ?" 



GENERAL GRANT's LAST ILLNESS. 587 

'' No ; not dead, but he will be in a few minutes. Nothing can 
save him." 

Dr. Shrady jumped up and ran into the room where the General 
was. Mrs. Grant, weeping, reached out her hand and said : " Ulysses, 
do you know me? " 

The General's chin was resting upon his breast. He slowly 
raised his head and said : " Yes." 

Dr. Newman exclaimed: *^ It is all over; I will baptize him." 
He went quickly into another room, got a silver bowl, filled it with 
water, came back, dipped his hand into it, and said : " I baptize 
thee, Ulysses Simpson Grant, in the name of the Father, Son and 
Holy Ghost." 

The General slowly raised his head and remarked : " I thank 
you." Then, turning to his family he raised one hand and uttered 
the words : " I bless you all." 

To Dr. Newman he observed, " Doctor, I intended to attend to 
this myself." 

Meanwhile Drs. Shrady and Douglas were consulting with each 
other in the corner. 

Dr. Douglas said : " He will die sure. He has gone ; the pulse 
has left the wrist." 

Dr. Shrady, as if struck by inspiration, replied : " I will give him 
brandy." 

'* You cannot do it ; he cannot swallow," said Dr. Douglas. 

*' I will give it to him hypodermically," answered Dr. Shrady. 

'' How much? " asked Dr. Douglas. 

" A .barrelful if necessary," retorted Dr. Shrady. 

Dr. Shrady rushed into another room. " Harrison," said he 'to 
the man-servant, ''have you any brandy?" Harrison answered 
*^ Yes," and handed him some. Dr. Shrady rushed back and gave 
Grant a syringe-full in each arm. The General revived, the pulse 
returned to his wrist and his life was saved. 

Dr. Newman walked into an adjoining room with Dr Shrady and 
asked ; '^ Doctor, how is he ?" 

" 1 don't think he will die," said the doctor. 

*' Our prayers have been answered," said Dr. Newman. 

The General rallied for a few days, and there was no other severe 
.attack until the night when the spells of choking came on. Then 
he was convinced that he would soon die. 

'* I am choking to death," he said, in a feeble voice. 

" Be quiet, be quiet, you won't," said Shrady ; " it will be over in 
a moment." 

Drs. Shrady and Douglas passed up and down the room, looked 
at the reporters on the sidewalk in front of the house smoking 
their cigars, and wished very much to change positions with them. 



588 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Since that time the General's system and appetite have grown much 
better. It was no longer necessary to give him morphia to induce 
rest. During his severest attacks the physicians would almost beg 
of him not to take any, but he insisted, and it was given him in 
small quantities only. 

GENERAL GRANTS BIRTHDAY. 

The 27th day of April, the sixty-third anniversary of the birth of 
General Grant was celebrated by his many friends and comrades all 
over the land. His state of health having greatly improved, he 
had a happy birthday. 

He went outdoors twice, met and talked with friends in the parlor 
as well as in the library and joined his family at the birthday dinner, 
enjoying the evening with them afterwards. The day passed as 
quietly in the house as could be expected, and the General was 
fortunately in condition to make a good deal of it for an invalid, 
for besides seeing people and talking with them he was able to read 
many of the messages of congratulation addressed to him. 

The General rested in the last part of the afternoon, so that he 
felt refreshed when dinner was announced at 6 30 o'clock. General 
Badeau, Senator Chaffee, and Mr. and Mrs. Newman had joined 
the family for this event. The family and guests had entered the 
dining-room when the General came down stairs. He was joyfully 
greeted and seemed very happy. In the centre of the table sixty- 
three tapers were aflame amid banks of flowers. The mantelpiece 
and windows were also bright and redolent with flowers. Dinner 
occupied about two hours, the general sitting through it and 
relishing as much as any one the pleasantries of the event. After 
dinner there were family devotions. Then all went into the parlor. 

At 10 o'clock, thoroughly wearied by the unwonted excitement 
of the day, the General went to his room. 

During the evening General Grant sent the following for publi- 
cation : 

"To the various army posts, societies, cities, public schools, states, corpora- 
tions, and individuals, North and South, who have been so kind as to send me 
concrratulations on my 63d birthday, I wish to offer my grateful acknowledg- 
ments. The despatches have been so numerous and so touching in tone that 
it would have been impossible to answer them if I had been in perfect health. 

" U. S. Grant." 

Since that day the General lingered between life and death. Re- 
peatedly he was able to take a ride to Central Park ; on other days 
he was hardly able to rise from his easy-chair. At last it was 
thought advisable by his physicians to remove the patient to the 
country, and the kind offer of his cottage on Mt. McGregor, near 
Saratoga, by Mr, Jos. Drexel, the banker, was accepted. 

It was not the General Grant of the portraits and busts with 




GENERAL GRANT IN HIS EASY CHAIR, 



(589) 



590 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

which the public is famihar who left his home in East Sixty-sixth 
street on the morning of June i6th, to take the cars for Saratoga.. 
It was a bent, decrepit old man with shrunken limbs, on which his 
clothes hung pitifully loose, and one whose face was so wasted that 
its thinness put it out of all proportion to the rest of the head be- 
hind, which seemed abnormally large in consequence. A murmur 
of surprise and pity escaped the lips of those who stood with heads 
uncovered on the sidewalk over which the old soldier shuffled to 
his carriage. It was half-past 8 o'clock. The Grant household 
had been astir nearly two hours. Through the parlor windows the 
furniture could be seen covered over as it was to remain until the 
return of the family. Two carriages from a livery stable had taken 
Mrs. Fred Grant, Jesse Grant, and his wife and child, and the 
Colonel's children. Henry, the white nurse, rode on the box of 
one of the carriages. Then the family carriage, a closed landau, 
was driven in front of the door by the colored coachman. Twenty 
or thirty persons gathered on the sidewalk on either side of the 
house, and on the stoops up and down the street a few of the neigh- 
bors stood and watched the house. 

When Harrison, the General's man servant, appeared in the front 
door with a valise the laborers on the new building on the opposite 
side of the street quitted work, and waited to see the General. He was 
not twenty steps behind Harrison. He tottered as he halted on the 
top step of the stoop. He wore his familiar old silk hat, now so large 
for him that it rested on his ears. A white cravet circled his neck, 
and hid from a cursor}^ glance the frightful swelling on his neck. 
A black Prince Albert coat, light trousers, a world too wide for his 
shrunken limbs, completed his outer dress. He leaned on the 
crooked handle of his stout walking stick, without which he never 
stirs from his chair nowadays, as he looked up and down the hot 
street. He felt his way down the steps by putting his cane a step 
ahead of him, leaning on it, and then following it with his feet. 
When he reached the sidewalk he made his way to the carriage 
door. It was then that the low exclamation of pity escaped from 
the spectators; for it was evident that the hero had little left beside 
his indomitable will. 

When the bystanders covered their heads and turned to look 
after the departing carriage, more than one man said sadly to his 
neighbor : " We will never see the General alive again in New 
York." 

General Grant walked into the station without aasistance. He 
is not only ambitious but stubborn, and those who are caring for 
him have learned that while his strength lasts he insists upon hav- 
ing his own way. It is only when he asks for help or attention in 
any way that they venture to intrude their offers. At almost every 



Ba!?T??!ffiSSSBiB» 




GEN'L GRANT LEAVING HIS RESIDENCE FOR AN AFTERNOON WALK. 

(591) 



592 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

depot there were little knots of people who waved their hands and 
handkerchiefs at the flying cars. At sight of the brown walls of the 
riding school and of the dome of the observatory peeping over the 
dense foliage at West Point, the General beckoned to the Doctor 
and pointed across the river, nodding and smiling as though he 
wanted them to know that he was pleased at the sight of the place 
where, as a lad, he was schooled in the art of war. As long as he 
could see the buildings, even by bending down and looking out of 
the furthermost window, he riveted his gaze on the beautiful pro- 
montory. 

The journey of 155 miles had been made in 195 minutes. There 
was a stop of four minutes while the Delaware and Hudson Canal 
Company's locomotive took the place of the Vanderbilt engine. 

The run up the mountain would not have been disagreeable to a 
tourist, but it was evident that it wearied the General more than all 
the rest of his riding. 

When the summit was reached and the train stopped Harrison 
and the nurse were busy, and did not notice that the General had 
stepped from the car to the platform and was walking up the 
covered plank walk toward the cottage, his heavy stick thumping 
the boards at every step. He glanced for an instant at the little cot 
with its white pillow and sheet resting on the grass by the side of 
the path, and left there with the expectation that he could not 
reach the cottage except as the occupant of that cot. 

General Grant's second day on the mountain top passed without 
developing any new phase in the disease from which he suffered. 
The invalid enjoyed the change, and he spent almost the whole 
day on the broad verandah that surrounds the Drexel cottage. 
Most of the time he sat in a big, square cane-bottomed chair, with 
some of the members of the family around him. While alone he 
several times started up and slowly paced the verandah. 

During an interview Dr. Newman, the spiritual adviser and friend 
of General Grant, made the following remarks : — 

" Dr. Douglas is a fine fellow, and a careful, thoroughly scientific 
man, but he has taken an unaccountable dislike to newspaper men 
and they reciprocate the feeling with interest. Consequently he 
snubs them frequently, and they lampoon him unmercifully. He 
said the other day, that he believed that 'penny-a-liners' knew more 
about the General's condition than he did, or, at least, they thought 
so. But I have always felt differently. I felt sorry for the poor 
fellows who stood out in the cold, the snow and the sleet all night 
long in front of the General's house last spring, and frequently when 
Douglas has refused to say a word I have stopped to give them a 
thorough idea of the situation. My own views are shared by the 
General. He is most sensibly affected by the thousand marks of 



1 




GENERAL GRANT SOON AFTER HIS ARRIVAL AT MT. MCGREGOR. 
^^ (593) 



594 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

love and esteem that have been showered upon him from every 
quarter of the land, and while he is too big a man, too sensible to 
have his head turned, he appreciates the motives and likes to have 
proper inquiries answered." 

" It must be a great solace to the old soldier in his suffering to 
feel that he is so beloved by the entire nation." 

"It is. It is the sympathy of the children that affects him most, 
though. He gets hundreds of letters from little ones all over the 
land, expressing hope that the General may recover. 

^'He loves children, and the thought that thousands and thou- 
sands of them all over the land lisp prayers for his recovery cheers 
him up as if by magic at times." 

" The General has faith in the efficacy of these prayers ?" asked 
the reporter. 

"The General knows that he is afflicted with an incurable com- 
plaint, and at times he is despondent, but he is a true Christian, and 
has a Christian's profound belief in prayer. He has religious ser- 
vices morning and evening, and takes great delight in them. I call 
the General's a most beautiful Christian character." 

Dr. Shrady, on the 25th of June, telegraphed to \\i^ Medical Re- 
cord {ox its Saturday issue the following official bulletin of General 
Grant's condition : 

"The progress of the disease from which General Grant is suffering is, bar- 
ring accidental compHcations, slow. Comparing the condition of the patient 
with what it was a month ago, the changes which have taken place can be appre- 
ciated. Taking this period of time into consideration, it can be said thatthe swell- 
ing under the angle of the lower jaw, on the right side, has increased and has 
become harder and more deeply fixed. It has shown a tendency to progress 
in a direction downward and forward upon the right side of the neck, the in- 
filtration extending into the neighboring glandular structures. The lancinating 
pains in those parts, although fortunately not frequent nor severe, have a sig- 
nificance which cannot be ignored. The ulceration on the right side of the 
base of the tongue has become deeper and more irregular, although its super- 
ficial area has not perceptibly increased. This is the seat of the pain occasioned 
in swallowing and when certain examinations in the throat are made. The 
destructive process on the right side of the uvula is apparently quiescent, al- 
though a new portion of the margin of the palatal curtain is showing a ten- 
dency to break down. The voice has been reduced to a whisper, due partly 
to inflammatory involvement of the vocal cords and partly to nervous atony 
of the latter. There is some impairment of general strength and some loss in 
weight, although the appetite is unchanged and the usual amount of nourish- 
ment is taken. The removal to Mt. McGregor has so far proved beneficial. 
It has enabled the patient to recover lost ground, and this, in a measure, has 
counterbalanced the effects of his local malady." 

In his moments of utmost distress there was no diminution of 
General Grant's courage. In his intervals of relief from excruciat- 
ing pain he welcomed his grandchildren to his side and took pleas- 
ure while they played about him. 

On June 23 he had so far regained his voice that he spent some 



GENERAL GRANT S LAST ILLNESS. 595 

time in conversation, but thernext day it had again depai.-d, and 
when the physicians held their consultation they announced that 
the disease was marked by uninterrupted progress. Emaciation 
had brought his weight down to 130 pounds, a decrease of ten 
pounds in two weeks. Anxious to build himself up, he endeavoured 
to take as much food as possible, and he astonished the doctors by 
his knowledge of the use of cocaine, by which the mucus was 
cleared from his throat, and the necessity of employing morphia to 
allay his pains and induce sleep. Fluctuations were incessant ; the 
27th was the best day he had so far had upon the mountain ; and 
when Harrison drew him in his chair up the bluff he wrote on his 
tablets to a newspaper representative who stood by : " For a maa 
who has been accustomed to drive fast horses, this is a considerable 
come down in point of speed." On the 29th he wrote this courage- 
ous note for the benefit of some of the younger members of his 
family : 

Do as I do. I take it quietly. I give myself not the least concern. If I 
knew that the end was to be to-morrow I would try and get rest in the mean- 
time. As long as there's no progress there's hope. 

LAST COMMUNICATIONS. 

While the scientific dogma that there could be no obstacle to the 
growth of the cancer was daily becoming better authenticated, it 
was also beyond question that the removal to Mt. McGregor had 
lengthened Grant's span of life. He knew it when he handed the 
subjoined note to Dr. Douglas on June 30 : 

The atmosphere here enables me to live in comparative comfort while I am 
being treated, or while nature is taking its course with my disease. I have no 
idea that I should have been able to come here now if I remained in the city. 
It is doubtful, indeed, whether I would have been alive. Now I would be 
much better able to move back than to come at the time I did. 

A medical consultation was held on July 4, and he was informed 
that exhaustion would doubtless be the final result of his disease. 
It was the twenty-second anniversary of his victory at Vicksburg, 
but it was only alluded to when he wrote the date for his wife. The 
succeeding week was one of ease and quiet. In accordance with 
his wishes the amount of cocaine used in his throat was diminished, 
he feeling that it lessened the force of his voice. On the 8th the 
Mexican editors visiting the United States called on him, and for 
them he wrote this last expression of his ideas of public policy: 

My great interest in Mexico dates back to the war between the United States 
and that country. My interest was increased when four European monarchies 
attempted to set up their institutions on this continent, selecting Mexico, a 
territory adjoining. It was an outrage on human rights for a foreign nation to 
attempt to transfer her institutions and her rulers to the territory of a civilized 
people without their consent. I hope Mexico may soon begin an upward and 
prosperous departure. She has all the conditions ; she has the people ; she has 



596 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

the soil ; she has the climate, and she has the minerals. The conquest of 
Mexico will not be an easy task in the future. 

On July 10 General Grant was visited by ex-Confederate General 
Simon B Buckner, whom he captured at Fort Donelson. The in- 
cident was made remarkable by Grant's communication to Buckner, 
which may be quoted as his final message to his countrymen on 
their national glory and the value of their institutions. 

I have witnessed since my sickness just what I wished to see ever since the 
war — harmony and good feeling between the sections. I have ahvays con- 
tended that if there had been nobody left but the soldiers we would have had 

peace in a year. and are the only two that I know who do not seem 

to be satisfied on the Southern side. V/e have some on ours who failed to ac- 
complish as much as they wished, or who did not get warmed up in the fight 
until it was all over, who have not had quite full satisfaction. The great ma- 
jority, too, of those who did not go into the war have long since grown tired of 
the long controversy. We may now well look forward to a perpetual psace at 
home, and a national strength that will screen us against any foreign complica- 
tion. I believe, myself, that the war was worth all it co^t us, fearful as that 
was. Since it was over I have visited every state in Europe, a-id a num- 
ber in the East. I know, as I did not before, the value of our inheritance. 

Monday, July 13, can be set down as the day of the invalid's last 
rally. His strength had so improved, his spirits were so buoyant, 
his sallies of humor so frequent, his voice so clear as to surprise the 
physicians and to deceive others into the belief that actual conva- 
lescence had set in. But the former warned the family and the 
country that science — in this case unerring — told them that this 
epoch of betterment was only a phase of the disease, and did no 
more than impede its march. Yet up to the 17th the General was 
in such good condition that Dr. Douglas was willing to permit him 
to resume literary labor, but the 1 8th was characterized by mental 
depression and physical weakness. Sunday, the 19th, was an 
auspicious day, and the swelling at the root of the tongue was 
much decreased. On Monday, June 20, General Grant was carried 
to the outlook on the mountain verge, and on the 21st the reaction 
began which has terminated his life. 

The early morning hours at the Grant cottage were cool and re- 
freshing on Wednesday, the 2 2d of July. On the veranda, where 
the incandescent electric lamps were burning all night, the ther- 
mometer marked seventy-two degrees. This was the equable 
temperature maintained in the sick room while General Grant re- 
mained in New York, and to it was added, this morning, the sweet 
smell from the pine trees that bend over the cottage roof. A gentle 
breeze, soft and delicious, swept miles and miles down the valley 
and from the mountains. It stirred the curtains at the window 
near which sat the sick man, and it fanned his face more gratefully 
than could the careful hands that were watching near. Between 
three and four o'clock this morning the gray tint of another day 



GENERAL GRANT'S LAST ILLNESS. 597 

crept up the horizon beyond the green mountains, perhaps the last 
earthly day of the sick man sitting within the cottage parlor. 
Once, at nearly four o'clock, Mrs. Grant, attired in a loose gown, of 
white, came out upon the veranda and seated herself in one of the 
many deserted willow chairs that were scattered in groups about 
the piazza. For ten minutes she sat motionless, and gazed away 
to the east, where the gray tint of another day had grown to a 
fuller promise. Her face rested against her hand, and she was 
evidently wrapt in thought. Suddenly there came the sound of 
coughing from within the cottage. The General was clearing his 
throat of mucus. Mrs. Grant left the piazza quickly and seated 
herself by the General's side slowly fanning his face. The cough- 
ing was not severe. Colonel Fred. Grant entered the room while 
the nurse was aiding his father and took a seat at the side and be- 
hind the General. It was time to administer food. The nurse 
touched the shoulder of Dr. Douglas, as he lay asleep on a couch 
in the same room. He arose fully dressed, as he was all night, and 
seated himself beside the patient. The food was given from a cup 
and the mouth and throat were cleared by the doctor. It was after 
four o'clock and the gray of the east had changed to pale orange 
tints. When the physician laid aside his appliance General Grant 
leaned forward in his chair, and signified a desire that a lamp 
should be brought. The nurse brought a lamp, and held it at the 
sick man's shoulder, and at the same moment the General turned 
his face toward the light and upward to bid the nurse bring his pad 
and pencil. His wish was not at the moment understood, and 
turning a trifle further the General repeated his wish. 

The General's face, as he spoke, appeared strained and drawn, but 
its color and fulness were not such as would be expected after such 
suffering and care. The lips moved heavily and the whisper was 
husky and low, but the nurse understood, and the pad and pencil 
were brought. Then while the red light of the candle fell on his 
downcast face he wrote, but only briefly. The slip was handed to 
Dr. Douglas, who at once turned it over to Colonel Grant, who had 
arisen and stood beside his mother at the General's side. It was a 
private family communication, and, when finished, the sick man re- 
sumed his half reclining position with his head slightly inclined for- 
ward and his elbows on the sides of the chair, while the finsfers of 
either hand were interlocked each with the other beneath his chin. 

It was 4.30 o'clock, and peaks of the mountains eastward were 
darkly outlined against the reddening dawn. The faint glow crept 
between the pines and birches, through the cottage windows, and 
tinged the sick man's cheek with the dawn of what was believed by 
the doctors to be his last day. At five o'clock Dr. Douglas was 
aroused to send a summons to Dr. Sands. The General moved 



598 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

restlessly, and his eyes, for a few moments, gazed intently away 
through the trees where a new day was beginning. Then he settled 
down in his chair and dozed. 

The message to Dr. Sands was sent only that the responsibility 
of the case at the close of the night should be shared by the mem- 
bers of the medical staff, and not with the thought that any aid 
could be rendered by any person at that time or through the open- 
ing day. The General was given stimulants, but he grew weaker 
hour by hour. 

The morning was clear, and the mercury at eleven o'clock regis- 
tered eighty degrees. All visitors were kept from the cottage, and 
a Sabbath day quiet prevailed about the spot. Drs. Douglas and 
Newman were with the family, and the day was one of quiet waiting. 
The General sat as he did last night, his eyes closed much of the 
time, but coherent and clear whenever he spoke. 

At I P.M. Dr. Douglass left the cottage. He says the General 
sat with his head inclined forward and eyes closed the greater part 
of the time. The pulse was very we?.k and fluttering. 

With the declining day the physician believed the General would 
also rapidly decline. 

At 2 o'clock the members of the family and Dr. Newman were 
grouped in the darkened room near General Grant. Observing 
their evidences of feeling, the General said: '* I do lot want any- 
body to be distressed on my account " 

The development of weakness of General Grant during the after- 
noon was not particularly noticeable from hour to hour, but between 
three o'clock and six o'clock there was a clearly marked increase of 
weakness. At three o'clock it was possible to measure the pulse 
beats, but at six o'clock one of the physicians stated that the pulse 
could not be counted. There were two reasons existent for the ina- 
bility of the doctors to catch the pulse-beats, they were so frequent 
and so feeble. During the afternoon the blood-tide had so quick- 
ened that it more rapidly wore the system and exhausted the frail 
basis upon which might be placed a hope that the General would 
rally. 

The closed and silent cottage had all day suggested the enact- 
ment of the last scene in General Grant's earthly career. 

While the physicians were at dinner, Harrison came to the hotel 
and called Dr. Douglas, who went at once and alone to the cottage. 
Soon afterward another messenger summoned Drs. Shrady and 
Sands, and they repaired to the cottage, closely followed by Rev. 
Dr. Newman. The exits of the doctors and clergyman from the 
hotel were, however, so quietly effected, that (qw knew that they 
had been summoned to the cottage. Arriving there, they found 
General Grant again evidently sinking. The General seemed rest- 



i 



GENERAL GRANTS LAST ILLNESS. 599 

less. "Would you like to lie down, father?" asked Colonel Fred 
Grant, who noticed his father's restlessness. The General nodded, 
and at the same moment essayed to rise unassisted; but the effort 
was too great, and he sank back into the chair, and the Colonel 
and nurse aided him to arise, and then supported him to the bed, 
where he was carefully lowered to a reclining position and partly 
on his face. Dr. Douglas then rolled the chairs back, and one of 
the physicians has since remarked, that the General had left his 
chair for the last time. The belief was that General Grant had at 
length lain down to die. The family were all gathered around the 
sick man, and again Dr. Newman, at about the same hour as on the 
previous night, and at Mrs. Grant's request, knelt beside the Gen- 
eral and prayed. Heads were bowed, and tears were on the cheeks 
of men as well as women. 

As the sun went down, a cool breeze sprang up, and laymen 
thought that the cool night would help General Grant to rally. 
The doctors, however, were prepared to attend the General's death- 
bed at a moment's notice. They stood somewhat apart, and the 
family was near its fast-sinking head, and then, after an hour, death 
seemed a little less rapidly gaining on the man it had pursued just 
nine months; for it is just nine months ago that General Grant 
walked into Dr. Douglas' office to seek his professional aid for the 
cancer that has done what war could not. Then the doctors and 
clergymen strolled out upon the piazza, and sat near the parlor 
window, and Jesse Grant joined them at times; but the other mem- 
bers of the family remained in the sick room, and watched and 
waited, while the General answered *'yes" and "no" to several 
questions. 

At nine o'clock the General's pulse was up to one hundred and 
sixty-five beats to the minute, and fluttering. 

During the evening the extremities of the sick man had been 
cold, and in the visible symptoms were the signs that nature puts 
out when death is chilling the powers. The General, as the night 
was passing, seemed to suffer no pain, though the lines of his face 
were drawn and the furrows of the brow were knitted as he lay 
upon the cot, beside which the family were constantly watching. 

At eleven o'clock the General was not asleep. The hands and 
forearms were colder than two hours before. The patient's mind 
was yet clear and comprehensive of events and utterances about 
him. Between ten and eleven o'clock Dr. Shrady had accosted the 
General, and he answered in a husky voice and promptly. 

The advent of July 23, marked a change in General Grant's con- 
dition which was significant. 

The chill at the extremities was increasing, and the use of hot 
applications to keep warmth in the extremities and vital parts were 



6oO LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

resorted to. They were of some avail, but artificial warmth was^ 
without power to reach the cause or stay the results of dissolution^ 
which began on the 2ist, and had been progressing steadily, though 
graduall}^ 

So weak had General Grant grown at three o'clock that, though 
he frequently attempted to do so, he was unable any longer to clear 
the gathering mucus from his throat. It accumulated and remained, 
and as four o'clock drew and daylight came a point had been 
reached when expectoration was impossible. There was not left 
enough of strength, and from four o clock on there was in the 
throat the significant rattle of mucus that was filling the lungs and 
clogging the throat. At three o'clock the General asked for water, 
and after that it is not remembered that he uttered any word: At 
four o'clock the breathing was quickened, and reached fifty to the 
minute. One hour later the respirations had reached sixty, and 
between five and six o'clock, the finger nails had become blue, and. 
the hands further evidenced the progress of numbness at the ex- 
tremities, and at every breath the mucous clogging in the throat was 
growing more noticeable. 

A few minutes before eight o'clock Drs. Douglas, Shrady and 
Sands stood on the cottage veranda conversing on the condition of 
General Grant, and discussing the probabilities of his death and the 
limit of life left the sick man. Mrs. Sartoris and stenographer 
Dawson, were conversing a little distance away, when Henry, the 
nurse, stepped hastily upon the piazza and spoke quietly to the 
physicians. He told them he thought the General was very near 
to death. The medical men hastily entered the room where the 
sick man was lying and approached his side. 

Upon scanning the patient's face, Dr. Douglas ordered the family 
to be summoned to the bedside. Haste was made, and Mrs. Grants 
Mr. Jesse Grant and wife, Ulysses S. Grant, Jr., and wife, and Mrs. 
Colonel Grant were quickly beside the doctors at the sick man's 
cot. Mrs. Sartoris and Mr. Dawson, had followed the doctors in 
from the piazza, and the entire family was present. 

Colonel Grant seated himself at the head of the bed with his left 
arm resting upon the pillow above the head of the General, who 
was breathing rapidly and with slightly gasping respirations. Mrs. 
Grant, calm, but with intense agitation bravely suppressed, took a 
seat close by the bedside. She leaned slightly upon the cot, resting 
upon her right elbow and gazing with tearful eyes into the General's 
face. She found there, however, no token of recognition, for the 
sick man was peacefully passing into another life. Mrs. Sartoris 
came behind her mother and. leaning over her shoulder, so wit- 
nessed the close of a life in which she had constituted a strong 
element of pride. Directly behind Mrs. Grant and Mrs. Sartoris^ 



GENERAL GRANTS LAST ILLNESS. 60I 

and at a little distance removed, stood Doctors Douglas, Shrady^ 
and Sands, spectators of the closing of a life their efforts and 
counsel had so prolonged. On the opposite of the bed from his 
mother, and directly before her, stood Jesse Grant and Ulysses S. 
Grant, Jr., and near the corner of the cot, on the same side as Jesse, 
and near to each, was N. E. Dawson, the General's stenographer 
and confidential secretary. At the foot of the bed, and gazing 
directly down into the General's face, was Mrs. Colonel Fred. Grant, 
Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant, Jr., and Mrs. Jesse Grant, while somewhat 
removed from the family circle Henry, the nurse, and Harrison, the 
General's body servant, were respectic^ely watching the closing life 
of their master. The General's little grandchildren, Ulysses S. 
Grant, Jr., and Nellie, were sleeping the sleep of childhood in the 
nursery-room above. Otherwise the entire family and household 
were gathered at the bedside of the dying man. 

The doctors noted, on entering the room that the purplish tinge 
which is one of nature's signals of final dissolution, had settled be- 
neath the finger-nails. The hand that Dr. Douglas lifted was fast 
growing colder. The pulse had fluttered beyond the point where 
the physician could distinguish it from the pulse-beats in his own 
finger-tips. The respiration was very rapid, and was a succession 
of shallow, panting inhalations, but, happily, the approaching end 
was becoming clearer, the rattling fulness of the throat and lungs, 
and as the respirations grew quicker and more rapid at the close, 
they also became less labored and almost noiseless. This fact was 
in its results a comfort to the watchers by the bedside, to whom 
was spared the scene of an agonizing or other than a peaceful death. 
The wife almost constantly stroked the face, forehead and hands of 
the dying General, and at times, as the passionate longing to pre- 
vent the event so near would rise within her, Mrs. Grant pressed 
both his hands and leaning forward tenderly kissed the face of the 
sinking man. Colonel Fred. Grant sat silently but with evident 
feeling, though his bearing was that of a soldierly son at the death- 
bed of a hero father. U. S. Grant, Jr., was deeply moved, but Jesse 
bore the scene steadily, and the ladies while watching with wet 
cheeks were silent, as befitted the dignity of a life such as was 
closing before them. The morning had passed five minutes be3^ond 
eight o'clock, and there was not one of the strained and waiting 
watchers but who could mark the nearness of the life-tide to its 
final ebbing. Dr. Douglas noted the nearness of the supreme mo- 
ment, and quietly approached the bedside and bent over it, and 
while he did so, the sorrow of the gray-haired physician seemed 
allied with that of the family. Dr. Shrady also drew near. It was 
seven minutes after eight o'clock and the eyes of the General were 
closing. His breathing grew more hushed as the last functions of 



602 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

the heart and lungs were hastened to the closing of the ex-Presi- 
dent's life. A peaceful expression seemed to be deepening in the 
firm and strong-lined face, and it was reflected as a closing comfort 
in the sad hearts that beat quickly under the stress of loving sus- 
pense. A minute more passed and was closing as the General 
drew a deeper breath. There was an exhalation like that of one 
relieved of long and anxious tension. The members of the family- 
were impelled each a step nearer the bed, and each awaited another 
respiration, but it never came. There was absolute stillness in the 
room, and a hush of expectaut suspense, and no sound broke the 
silence save the singing of the birds in the pines outside the cottage, 
and the measured throbbing on the engine that all night had waited 
by the little mountain depot down the slope. 

** It is all over," quietly spoke Dr. Douglas, and there came then 
heavily to each witness the realization that General Grant was dead. 
Then the doctor withdrew, the nurse closed down the eyelids and 
composed the dead General's head, after which each of the family 
group pressed to the bedside one after the other and touched their 
lips upon the quiet face so lately stilled. 

After Drs. Douglas and Shrady left the death-bed they conversed 
feelingly of the latter hours of General Grant's life. The pulse first 
had indicated failure, and the intellect was last to succumb in its 
clearness and conscious tenacity, and that after midnight last night, 
a circumstance at three o'clock indicated cognizance. " Do you 
want anything, father ?" questioned Colonel Fred, at that hour. 
*' Water," whispered the General, huskily. But when offered water 
and milk, they gurgled in his throat and were ejected, and that one 
word of response was the last utterance of General Grant. 

Dr. Douglas remarked that the peculiarity of General Grant's 
death was explained by the remarkable vitality that seemed to pre- 
sent an obstacle to the approach of death. It was a gradual passing 
aways of the vital forces, and a reflex consciousness, the doctors 
thought, was retained to the last. The General died of sheer ex- 
haustion and a perfectly painless sinking away. 

"Yes," interjected Dr. Shrady, " the General dreaded pain, and 
when he felt he had begun sinking, he asked that he should not be 
permitted to suffer. The promise was made, and it has been kept. 
Since he commenced to sink on Tuesday night he was free from 
pain." Towards the last no food was taken, but when a wet cloth 
was pressed to his lips he would suck from it the water to moisten 
his mouth. During the General's last night Dr. Shrady was con- 
stantly within call. Dr. Douglas was all night at the cottage, and 
Dr. Sands slept at the hotel after midnight. 

Dr. Shrady sent, under the headline, " at last," to the Medical 
Record the following official bulletin of General Grant's dying hours: 



GENERAL GRANT'S LAST ILLNESS. 603 

"Since our last bulletin was written the final change has come to General 
Grant. He passed peacefully away at 8 o'clock Thursday morning. On the 
morning of the day previous Dr. Douglas summoned Drs. Sands and Shrady 
to meet him at Mt. McGregor, as General Grant was sinking, and death 
seemed imminent. On their arrival the patient was found in a very prostrated 
condition, wiih frequent and feeble pulse, rapid respiration and inability to 
swallow. He was suffering no pain, but by his lisdess manner was apparently 
conscious that death was near. It was decided to sustain his vital powers to 
the utmost, and make his approaching end as comfortable as possible. The 
disposition to cough had ceased, and the respiration, although much acceler- 
ated, was not mechanically impeded by accumulated mucous secretions. At 
the time of the consultation he was in his easy chair, occupied so constantly by 
him day and night for the past five months. Toward evening, by his own re- 
quest, he was transferred to his bed, where h-" rested quietly until his death. 
As was anticipated by the medical gentlemen in attendance, he condnued to 
sink despite the stimulants locally applied and hypodermically administered. 
The fear of a painful and agonizing death was, happily for him and his family, 
not realized. He simply passed away by a gradual and easy cessation of the 
heart's action. Thus he was spared much of the suffering which would have 
been inevitable had his general strength allowed the throat disease to progress 
in its usual way. For so much, at least, there is reason for thankfulness.'* 



CHAPTER XXII. 

RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 

How he looked shortly after the war— Plain and unostentatious— Never used a rude word 
— Always polite and considerate, abstemious and taciturn, modest and a profound 
thinker; straightforward and frank in all things, a true friend and a magnanimous 
enemy — What Generals Beale, Sheridan, Horace Porter and Ingalls said of their 
old commander and friend — Mr. George W. Childs tells of some of Grants charac- 
teristics — Ex-Postmaster General Creswell's reminiscences— General Grant under 
fire — Grant and Johnson — What he did on his arrival at Washington after taking 
command of the armies of the United States — Senator Plawley's recollections of 
Grant's first nomination for President of the United States— Grant in April, i86i — 
Farmer Grant's neighbors— Grant's kindness towards the Confederate General Pick- 
ett— Col. McCaull on Grant's magnanimity — Grant taking risks— Mark Twain on 
Grant -An official account of General Lee"s surrender — Grant in battle. 

Notwithstanding the long array of admirable performances that 
have marked General Grant's career, there is scarcely any character 
in history in reference to whose real merit so much doubt has 
existed. The reasons for this are sufficiently indicated by a refer- 
ence to the remarkable reticence of the man and his utter abhorrence 
of the arts of the demagogue in whatever shape. He has studiously 
avoided sounding the trumpet of his own fame, either in public or 
private, and has been so generous in awarding praise to others, that 
the world has heard more of his subordinates than of himself Then, 
too, at the very outset of his career in the great Civil War he was 
denounced as being intemperate as well as incompetent. His 
splendid campaign against Fort Donelson, resulting in the capture 
of an entire army and in the infliction of the first staggering blow 
upon the Confederacy, was so incomprehensible to the people at 
large, but so persistently misrepresented, that many excellent per- 
sons came to believe that Grant had retarded that victory instead of 
having organized and achieved it by his own judgment and indomit- 
able courage. The bloody batde of Shiloh, followed by Halleck's 
disgraceful siege at Corinth, convinced the public that Grant must 
be entirely incompetent ; and it was not till after Vicksburg that the 
real truth began to be suspected. First it was McClernand who had 
" furnished him with brains ; " then it was C. F. Smith who had led 
his army to victory ; then it was Halleck ; and finally Sherman and 
McPherson, to whom all praise was due. It was not until Vicks- 
burg was followed by Chattanooga that the world came to look 
upon Grant as possessing any merit of his own. It is a safe rule to 
(604) 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 605 

judge men by the results of a lifetime, but an unsafe one, particu- 
larly in reference to military men. to judge from past reputation or 
isolated actions. In this day of skepticism there are but few people 
who believe entirely in ability, honor, vigor and manly virtue as the 
sure means of making life successful. And fewer still who are able 
to separate from their estimate of successful characters the idea that 
chance or fate may not have had as much to do with brilliant 
achievements as real worth and ability. 

A wjll-known author, some years ago, gives the following de- 
scription of General Grant : 

" Grant was a man somewhat under the medium size, though his body 
was closely and powerfully built. His feet and hands were small and 
neatly-sha;jjd ; his dress plain and exceedingly unostentatious ; his eyes 
large, dsep, leonine and very strong, equally capable of blazing with 
a resolution that nothing could withstand, and of shining with the 
steady light of benevolence and amiability. His temperament is admir- 
ably compounded of the sanguine, nervous and lymphatic. His capacity 
for labor surpassed comprehension; neither mental nor physical exevtion 
seemed to produce the least wear and tear upon him. He could ride at a 
dashing gait, hour after hour, witL the same ease with which he planned a 
battle or issued instructions for a campaign. He was never heard to give ut- 
teranc ; to a rude word or a vulgar jest ; no oatn has ever escaped his lips. 
No unfeeling or undignified speech, and no thoughtless or ill-natured criticism 
ever fell from him. It is this q lality which made him so successful in the per- 
son il questions which arose between him and his subordinates They usually 
mistook his slowness for dullness or a lack of spirit, and discovered 
mistake only after committin^^ a fital error. Grant was as unsuspicious 
and pure-hearted as a child, and as free from harmful intention; but 
he was stirred to the very deoths of his nature by an act of inhumanity 
or brutality of any sort . while meanness, ingratitude or uncharitableness ex- 
Cited him to the displav of the liveliest indignation. He was not slow in 
the e.xhibition of contempt or disgust for whatever was unmanly or unbe- 
coming. 

In issuing orders to his subordinates or in asking a service at the hands of 
a staff-ol'ficer, he was always scrupulously polite and respectful in manner. 

" Grant's personal habits and tastes were exceedingly simple; he despised 
the |.o np and show of empty parade. He lived i>lainly himself and could not 
toler.ite ostentation or extravagance in those about him. His mess was never 
luxuriously, though always well furnished with army rations and such supplies 
as could be transported readily in the limited number of wagons that he per- 
muted to follow his headquirters. He was very abstemious, and during his 
entire Western campaign the officers of his staff were forbidden to bring 
wines or hquors into camp. He was the most modest of men, and nothing an- 
noyed him more than a loud parade of personal opinion or personal 
vanity. He had a retentive memory and was deeply interested in all 
m liters which concerned the interests of humanity, and particularly his 
■ovn country. His understanding was of that incisive character that 
soon probed a question to the bottom, no matter how much the politicians 
or newspapers labored to confuse it. His memory was stored with 
pers nal incidents illustrative of men and manners in all parts of the 
country, showing that he had been a profound student of human nature 
throughout life; his appreciation of men and character has never been sur- 
passed. This was well shown in the reorganization of the army after he be- 



6o6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

came Lieutenant-General. It is well known that he did not fail in a single in- 
stance where a change was made, in putting the right man in the right place. 
He warmed towards a bold, outspoken and loyal nature; full of ardor and zeal 
himself, he naturally admired these qualities in others. Straightforward and 
frank in all things himself, he respected these qualities wherever they were tound. 
Indeed the most striking peculiarity of his nature, both as a man and a gen- 
eral, was a profound and undeviating truthfulness in all things. Those who 
have known him best will bear willing testimony to the statement that he never 
told a falsehood or made a voluntary misrepresentation of fact. 

" Grant having been educated as a soldier at West Point, the first military 
school of America, and having served under both Taylor and Scott, had, at 
the outbreak of the Rebellion, received all the training, both theoretical and 
practical, that was requisite to a thorough understanding of the military art. 
At the very outset of his career he showed plainly that he had not been an idle 
or unobservant student of his profession. He did not make the usual mistake of 
supposing that the private soldier was ignorant and thoughtless, and therefore 
to be considered as a mere machine to be provided with a musket or sabre, 
and then to be harassed into a reluctant performance of duty ; but was pro- 
foundly impressed with the idea that the volunteers were intelligent citizens 
of the republic, whose business had been to become acquainted with public 
affairs. 

" He held from the first that the government, in conducting the war, 
should have acted upon the hereditary policy of the nation and disbanded the 
regular army entirely, distributing its officers, non-commissioned officers and 
privates among the raw and untrained volunteers. By this means one or two 
commissioned officers and a few non-commissioned officers and privates of the 
old army could have been put into each new regiment. The Confederates, hav- 
ing no standing army to maintain, pursued exactly this course with their officers 
educated for the military service, and although they had comparatively few, 
their army for the first year of the war was under much better discipline than 
ours. 

" Grant knew that no genius, however remarkable, could command the na- 
tional armies in a war of such magnitude without the assistance of lieutenants 
who could be trusted to issue their own orders in the emergencies that were 
sure to arise. He therefore gave more thought to the proper organization and 
direction of armies upon the vital points of the enemy's territory and lines, 
and to the selection of men competent to command them, than to issuing 
the detailed orders of battle. Neither Sherman, nor Sheridan, nor Thomas, 
nor Canby ever failed him. 

"The quick judgment by which he discovered the enemy's plan to evacuate 
Fort Donelson, and the sudden resolution which he based thereupon, to attack 
at once, are evidences of something more than aggressive temper or mere 
brute courage. The tactics of Lookout Mountain, Chattanooga Valley and 
Missionary Ridge have never been surpassed. The grand tactics displayed 
during the overland campaign are worthy of the highest commendation, and 
had the execution of details been as fauUless as the conception of the move- 
ments, there would have been nothing to regret. Grant's conduct at Bel- 
mont, Fort Donelson, Shiloh, Vicksburg and in the Wilderness was all that 
could have been wished, and shows, beyond chance of dispute, that he pos- 
sessed, in the highest degree, that ' two-o'clock-in-the-morning courage' 
which Napoleon declared to be the rarest thing among generals. His unvaried 
course of success through four years of warfare shows tliat he was entitled to be 
ranked in the category of generals who never lost a campaign or a battle, and 
the easy simplicity with which he did the most extraordinary things pointed 
strongly to the possession of a remarkable genius for war." 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 607 

General Edward F. Beale, of Washington, in an interview portrays 
the character of General Grant in the following well-chosen words : 

'* I have been a very intimate friend of General Grant for the past fifteen 
years. My first acquaintance with him was not a personal one, however. It 
was through the news of his victories at Donelson. We were then in Cali- 
fornia, where everything was cast in gloom. We had no railroads nor tele- 
graph, and all the previous news we had was that everything was going against 
us. We felt as if we were sitting on a powder magazine which was apt to 
explode at any moment. When we heard of Grant's victories we felt that a 
man had arrived at last who could save his country. 

" Later, my acquaintance with General Grant ripened into the warmest 
friendship. To say that I considered him a great man does not express it. 
He was the greatest [man I know of. He fought and won battles the like 
of which have never occurred in modern times. Everybody is familiar 
wih his military and other public achievements, but in his private life 
his personal characteristics shone with equal brilliancy. 

" His three most prominent and admirable traits were guilelessness of char- 
acter, even temperament and great magnanimity. As I said, and as you 
know, my friendship with General Grant was of the most intimate nature. In 
all my daily companionship with him, at home or abroad, I never heard 
General Grant make a remark which could not be repeated with propriety 
before a room full of ladies. His character was wholly pure and free from 
guile. 

" His even disposition was something wonderful to me, and I have seen 
him tried almost beyond human endurance. He never cursed and swoie at 
people, and he never lost control of himself. He was always able to do what 
he considered right. 

" When General Grant has been a visitor at my house, children would 
overwhelm him with requests for his autograph. Often when we would return 
home late at night from some reception, tired and sleepy, on this table would 
be a pile of autograph albums a foot or two high. Mrs. Beale would say : 
' Come, General, it is time to retire. You are tired and need rest. Don'tStop 
to write in those books to-night, but wait till morning.' ' No,' General Grant 
would reply; 'I'll do it to-night. These books belong to little children and 
they will stop for them on their way to school in the morning and I don't 
want to disappoint them,' and he would write in every one. 

" He had a wonderful faculty as a writer. His mind grasped the whole 
subject, and he wrote without hesitation, I have seen him write for hours 

» without stopping for a word. He made fewer corrections in his writing than 
any one I ever knew. 
" During his military experiences he had learned that it was his duty to do 
the engineering and planning and to leave the details to his lieutenants. In 
this way he became accustomed to placing the most implicit confidence in 
those near him, for -fie supposed they would do their duty as he Avould his. 
So that to confidence in others alone can his terrible misfortunes in New York 
be attributed." 

At a recent dinner of the Gridiron Club at Washington, it was 
|fc . the privilege of the writer of this article to be seated next General 
HL Sheridan, who is not only a charming companion but a very enter- 
^■taining conversationalist upon topics in which he feels an interest. 
^■The suffering and dying condition of General Grant naturally 
^■became one of the topics of conversation. General Sheridan spoke 



<6o8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

feeling and tenderness that exhibited genuine affection for his old 
companion-in-arms, and related some facts which cannot fail to be of 
special interest at this time. The conversation was conducted with 
all the freedom that marks a casual dinner table talk. In the course 
of conversation General Sheridan remarked : 

" It is sad to think of General Grant dying under such physical torture as is 
inflicted by his terrible disease, and under such mental anguish as I know he 
endures in consequence of the unfortunate business failure that overwhelmed 
him and his family. I could never comprehend why the old man [all old 
soldiers call General Grant "the old man " J went into business, and particu- 
larly why he set himself up in Wall street. From the time he imbibed this 
business notion I have thought General Grant had lost that abundance of 
caution that has characterized all his movements. I have listened to him talk 
about making money in perfect amazement. He imagined that he had a 
talent for making money, and that his sons also possessed this talent to a 
remarkable degree. He'seemed never to tire of talking about this when we 
were so situated as to be free from intrusion, and when we could talk with 
freedom of by-gone days. Now I knew very well that General Grant did not 
possess any talent or genius for making money. His nature is too generous 
and confiding for that. His talent in connection with money was in an oppo- 
site direction, and caused him to get clear of money in a very short time. He 
could never keep money before he set up in Wall street, and you know he is a 
very bright fellow who can k(;ep money after he gets there. 

" What most surprised me, however, was that he should talk so much about 
this newly discovered talent. He talked persistently, and Grant always talked 
well when he felt free to talk, about accumulating a larger fortune, and as I 
noticed his earnestness of manner, 1 sometimes thought that I underrated him 
in this particular. Still I could not entu'tly divest myself of the apprehension 
I felt on hU account, and his very persistency and earnestness added to my 
fears. Why. I never knew Grant to talk about the great abilities which he did 
possess and which the world has recognized. No one ever heard him talk 
about his great military talents or boast about his splendid achievements in 
the field. And yet Grant knew he had extraordinary abilities in that direction, 
because his s- ccessful movements and the brilliant and decisive results that 
attended them showed him this. Indeed, General Grant had greater talent 
for conducting campaigns and fighting armies than he was really .aware 
of. Nobody, however, ever heard him talk about what he possessed in 
this direction, and the simple fact that he descanted to me with so much 
earnestness and frequency on his supposed money-making talents, started a 
suspicion in my mind that his previously strong mental forces were breaking up, 
and that he was rapidly moving away from his previous well-established lines 
of prudence and safety. No, the ' old man ' should have never gone into camp 
in Wall street, but should have settled down into private l^/e after he returned 
from his tour of the world and enjoyed that peace and quiet he so much 
needed after twenty years of constant application and arduous labor in the 
field ;\nd in the executive chamber. This might not have averted disease, but 
it would have averted financial disaster and the terrible mental distress which 
1 know he is now undergoing, and which is far more poignant than the gnaw- 
ing of his flesh by cancer. 

Later in the evening, the Lieutenant-General spoke of the reluct- 
ance with which General Grant left the army to become President 
of the United States. 

You have seen statements,'' said General Sheridan, "to the effect that the old 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 609 

man Liid plans to secure the nomination for the Presidency in 1868. There is 
no foundation for such statements, and I know whereof 1 speak. I know what 
his feehngs and desires were at that time touching his tuluie. He wanted, 
above all things, to remain with the army which he loved and whose idol he 
was and is still, and had no ambition whatever to become President. He 
doubted his ability to discharge the duties of President, but above all he had 
no taste nor inclination for political office. I know this," said the Lieu;en:int- 
General, with emphasis, " and I know that he was disposed to refuse the use of 
his name for a nomination for the Presidency, and he would have refused it 
had it m.t been for myself and other general officers of the army, and perhaps 
of the navy, who persuaded him to sacrifice his own feelings and desires in 
response to the call that was being made upon him. I came to Washington 
for the special purpose of discussing this matter with General Grant, having 
previously learned of his disinclination. It was apparent that there was a 
popular desire in the Northern States to have Grant for President, Indeed I 
believe this desire approached unanimity, and had the ' old man ' said the word 
he could have had the nomination from either party, such was the high an^ 
universal estimate in which he was held. But Grant was no politician then,- 
as he is no financier in his own affairs now. I felt that it was his duty to listen 
to the popular voice calling upon him to accept new duties and fresh respon- 
sibilities, a;,d become Chief Magistrate. At that particular period there was a 
great deal of bad feeling in the country growing out of President Johnson's 
quarrel with Congress, and the frequent disturbances in the Southern States, 
which were perhaps incidental to the sudden and violent changes made in all 
the conditions that existed in those States prior to the war, caused a feeling of 
great uneasiness throughout the country. We who were in the army regarded 
these storm indications with greater alarm than was generally supposed, and 
felt that it was of the very highest importance for the interests and welfare of 
the country, as well as for our own individual interests and comfort, that a 
man should succeed to the Presidency who possessed the fullest measure of 
public confidence, and whose presence in the executive office would give as- 
surance of peace and order. I knew General Grant was the one person best 
calculated to fill these conditions and restore and maintain public confidence 
and tranquillity. Therefore I and others close to General Grant urged him to 
listen to the call from the people and become President of the United States. 
He finally yielded to these importunities, but with reluctance." 

One of the most frequent callers at General Grant's residence was 
General Horace Porter. They were together in the war, and have 
been on terms of close and uninterrupted intimacy since. Speaking 
one night in admiration of the heroism with which General Grant 
had borne his many ills, and of the nature of his sufferings, General 
Porter said : 

" I presume no man in this century has had the mental strain that was put 
on General Grant from 1861 to 1876. An important command devolved upon 
him soon after the war began, and he was alwavs weighted with heavy military 
responsibilities. For four years he endured constant'application in a climate 
to which he was unused and which was highly malarious. After the war he 
was given no rest. He had to meet and overcome the difficulties attendant 
upon Johnson's administration and the initial stages of reconstruction, and 
heaped upon all that were eight exciting and important years of the Presidency. 
Few men could have stood it. 

"The effect of it on him did not appear, however, until his physical suffer- 
ings began with his fall a year ago last December. Since then he has suffered 
39 



6lO LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

terribly; no one knows how much, for he never complains. After that fall, 
when he injured his hip, pleurisy set in. It was a severe attack, ihen he be- 
gan to suffer from neuralgia, wiui intense pains in the head. His system had 
been shocked by the fall. The neuralgia helped to reduce it. As a means of 
relieving the neuralgia he had several teeth drawn. He refused to take an 
anaesthetic, and had them drawn at one sitting. That exercise of his wonder- 
ful will, in his then debilitated condition, gave the system another shock, from 
which it could not rally. Then this terrible disease of the tongue appeared. 
It has been a steady drain upon him, reducing his flesh rapidly and Vrcakening 
him beyond any former experience. But he has stood it all Without a murmur, 
just as he has taken all the reverses and trials of his life. To see him wasting 
and sinking in this way is more touching and excites deeper sympathy among 
his friends than if he made some sign of his sufferings, as ordinary men do, by 
grumbling and complaint." 

General Rufus Ingalls, who was a classmate of General Grant at 
West Point and has held intimate relations with him most of the 
time since, crave some recollections of the great soldier. He said 
that young Grant came to West Point in June, 1839, a boy of seven- 
teen, with a fair, frank, yet rather firm-set face. He was several 
inches below his full growth, and remained beardless even up to the 
time of his graduation. His warrant described him as *' U. S. 
Grant," which was not a correct designation, and the mistake Led 
to a good deal of queer discussion of legal points by cadets as to 
its effects upon his status as a member of the corps, and long after 
the error was proved to have no important consequence it remained 
a subject of pleasantry with Grant and his friends at the Point. 
Being introduced at the Academy under the initials " U. S," the 
cadets gave him the nickname of Uncle Sam, and this stuck to him 
till he was commissioned, when it became shortened to Sam, and 
as *' Sam Grant " he was known as long as he remained in the 
army. 

Cadet Grant had but a few intimate associates in the corps, but his 
friendships were unreserved and lasting, his manner with his in- 
timates very genial, and his cadet friends in those days thought him 
one of the manliest and best of fellows. He was very conscientious 
in matters of duty, and noticeably pure in mind and speech. He 
has often said, in after-life, that he never went down to Benny 
Haven's but once, when he was beguiled by Rufe Ingalls, a stanch 
patron of that renowned establishment. 

Grant went through the course of instruction with ease, and 
probably might have graduated higher in the list if there had been 
anything to call out exertion on his part. The class was a large 
one, numbering considerably over one hundred at the beginning of 
the course, but only thirty-nine came out of the ordeal at the end 
of four years. 

After the Mexican war. Grant was stationed on the Pacific coast, 
and here he would often interest and sometimes astonish his brother 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 6l I 

officers by his clear, luminous description of the actions in which 
he had taken part as a subaltern, especially the important battle of 
Monterey, and his criticism on the conduct of the respective sides 
occasionally induced the prediction that, in the improbable con- 
tingency of a great war, Sam Grant would make his mark. He 
left the army in 1854, and, so far as his comrades on the Pacific 
were concerned, wholly faded from view until he began to be heard 
of as an enterprising division commander in the West in the early 
part of the civil war. 

However much of his success and fame General Grant may owe 
to his native powers and youthful training, it seems beyond ques- 
tion that his four years at the Military Academy and his experience 
of actual war and campaigning in Mexico must be credited with a 
great influence upon his after career as a commander. And, in' the 
same line of reflection, it is worth nothing that since he has been 
in the public view the qualities that especially marked his character 
while a cadet have remained constant. In mature, as in youthful 
life, he has always been unobtrusive, quietly self-reliant, silent with 
the many, free and ever joyous with intimates, constant in his 
friendships and in language and conduct as guileless as a child. 
When directing from his headquarters at City Point the operations 
of all the armies of the Union his knowledge of every fact of the 
existing situation was always thorough and complete, and such as 
to enable him to make clear what might be obscure to an unin- 
formed mind. 

Not another man in the country knows as much about Genera) 
Grant as Mr. George W. Childs, who has been his most intimate 
friend for many years. Whenever General Grant came to this city 
he stopped at the residence of Mr. Childs, with but a few exceptions, 
when he made short stays at the houses of Mr. Drexel or the late 
Mr. A. E. Borie, Secretary of the Navy during a portion of Presi- 
dent Grant's administration. 

"When I saw General Grant on the 4th of March." said Mr. Childs. "he 
realized that his life was drawing to a close, but seemed to regard the approach 
of death calmly and without the slightest fear. While we were talking of the 
efforts of his friends to have him placed on the retired list, he testified how 
kindly he felt toward them, and spoke of the pleasure he felt at the kind 
remarks of the newspapers advocating his retirement. 

" While we were chatting I observed that it was half-past eleven o'clock, 
and the General said: 'I suppose the Senate is adjourning now.' Just then I 
received a telegram from Mr. Drexel, stating that General Grant had been 
placed on the retired list. 'There, General,' said I, 'read that.' A smile of 
pleasure illuminated his countenance, and for a moment he appeared unable 
to speak. Mrs. Grant entered the room and I told her the news. With a 
beaming face she cried out : ' They have brought us back our old commander.* 
The scene was very affecting. The General could hardly express the delight 
he felt at the compliment which had been paid to him. He bore not the 



6l2 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

slightest ill-will toward those who had oppose<i the bill, for he is the most 
magnanimous man I ever knew. 

"The greatest soldier that ever lived, he is as kind and gentle as a woman. 
He frequently told me how much it pained him to be accused of butciiery. 
He said he was always overcome by a feeling of sadness before a battle at the 
thought that many a poor fellow would never return from the field. He is 
generous to a fault, and has given away a fortune in charities. In this, like in 
everything else, he was modest. The same modesty that prevented him from 
asking for an appointment or a promotion caused him to maintain silence 
concerning his gifts to the needy. 

" I remember that when he was on one of his visits to me during his Presi- 
dency, a great many people called here to ask favors of him. Not caring to 
have him worried, I refused admittance to all whom I suspected of being on an 
errand of that kind. One day a lady, who lived in the same block — in fact, 
only a few doors from my house — called and asked to see him. * You may 
see her. General,' said I, laughing: ' I guess she is not after an appointment.' 
He came back in a little while and said, 'You were wrong; she was after an 
appointment.' I looked at him in astonishment, and he explained that the 
lady wanted him to transfer the sister-in-law of Edwin M. Stanton, Lincoln's 
Secretary of War, from the Mint, where she was then employed, and where 
the work was too hard for her, to the Treasury Department. He requested me 
to see the Assistant United States Treasurer in this city and ask him to give 
her a position. I did so, and the Assistant Treasurer told me he had no 
vacancy. 'General Grant's request is law, however,' said he, 'and I can make 
room for Mrs. Stanton by removing a lady who has no need for a position 
'here.' This was done, and some time afterwards I met a son of Mr. Stanton 
(the latter was dead at the time;, who thanked me for getting his aunt the 
appointment. ' General Grant appointed her,' said I. ' Oh, no,' said he, 
'General Grant himself told me that you had got the appointment for her.' 
This is characteristic of the General, who is continually doing good and giving 
others the credit. 

" He loves Philadelphia, and has a great many friends here. As an example 
of his esteem for Philadelphians I will tell you of something that is not known 
to any one but the General, the interested parties and myself. Mr. A. E. Borie 
was not the only Philadelphian who was offered a Cabinet position by General 
Grant. Four other gentlemen in this city were requested to become members 
of his Cabinet. They declined, and the matter was never made public. They 
are still living in this city and one of them has held a very high position. 

" It was at my recommendation that General Grant took the cottage at Long 
Branch. It adjoins mine, and there is no fence between the two properties. 
There the General has spent some of the happiest days of his life. He usually 
got up about seven o'clock in the morning, ate his breakfast and then took a 
drive of about ten miles. He went alone in his buggy. On his return 
he would look over his mail and read the newspapers. He dined at two 
o'clock generally, although for some years his dinner hour was seven, with a 
lunch at two. 

" After the meal at 2 o'clock he took another drive, and in the evening he 
sat on the porch and chatted with friends, many of whom visited him. We 
called on each other every day, and he sometimes strolled over to my cottage 
and talked with me while he enjoyed his cigar. 

" While the General is fond of a fast horse, he never visited the race-course at 
Long Branch, and never entered a grambling-house. He told me of a laugh- 
able incident that occurred to him while taking one of his ten-mile drives. On 
the road, a short distance ahead of him, he saw a countryman driving a mean- 
looking horse with a shabby buggy. Determined not to take the dust from 
such a sorry turnout, he gave his horse the reins and tried to pass. But the 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 613 

countryman also loosened his lines and held his position. After quite an 
exciting race the General saw he was beaten and pulled up his horse. The 
countryman turned in, his seat and, waving his hand, said, with a laugh, 'I 
made you take my dust. General,' and drove off The General enjoyed the 
joke on himself very much, and said he would like to meet that man again, 
but he never did. 

" The last time General Grant appeared in public was at Ocean Grove. Gov- 
ernor Oglesby, of llHnois, was with him and told me that when the cheers of 
ten thousand people rang out at the sight of the old hero, he turned around 
and saw the tears coursing slowly down the General's cheeks. 

" I thought that it would be very hard for him to stop smoking when his phy- 
sicians prohibited it. His indomitable will made the matter easy to him, how- 
ever. 'Did you find it difficult to give up the weed.?' I asked him. ' It was 
hard during the first two days,' he replied, ' but after that I did not mind it. I 
have no desire to smoke again.' 

" It has been said that Hamilton Fish wrote the speech the General made at 
the opening of the Centennial Exhibition. General Grant wrote that speech in 
this house, and I have the original manuscript." 

Mr. Childs then produced the manuscript, handsomely bound in 
morocco, with fly leaves of silk. The manuscript was written 
cleanly, having but few erasures, and was corrected here and there 
in lead pencil. 

During Grant's last illness, Rev. Henry Ward Beecher delivered 
the following eulogy in Plymouth Church, Brooklyn. 

" General Grant is at death's door. It may be weeks, it may be months, i^ 
may be hours. I cannot help praying for him. I pray for him as I go along 
the sireet. I do not pray that he may be saved — that is as the Lord wills. 
Going or staying is the same for him or for me, except that the part for him 
will be glory, f r I trust that General Grant in the essential elements of his 
character is a Christian. There are some remarkable things about him. No 
man ever heard Grant speak an irreverent word. No man ever heard General 
Grant, even in the narration of a story, use profane language. Never on the 
battle-field, never in those exigencies where men are provoked, did any man 
ever hear General Grant speak a word that was not in moderation and good 
faith. I believe that the essential elements of his character are based upon 
religion, and he is altogether a church-going man ; he has always believed in 
it. bee what a wonderful career he has had in the latter part of his life. His 
has been a hard life all the way through. His early life was not a pleasant 
one — I mean after he left West Point... I need not say anything about that 
great Civil War, where he was the Atlas upon whose shoulders the nation 
rested. What toil ! If he had not had an iron constitution it would have 
broken him down. When he came out of it and went to the presidency, for 
V'hich he had never had any training, and where his mistakes lay in fidelity 
to friends, he showed a great magnanimity of character. He does not doubt 
friends easily. If he takes hold of one he sticks to him. and he is in that 
regard credulous. And so h's credulity was abused. The mistakes of his 
administration lay at the door of the good qualities of the man. 1 have been 
with him a good deal and I have never heard him say a bad word about any 
human being. I have never heard him utter a sentiment that might not 
become a judge sitting coolly and c.ilmly on the bench. He came out from 
his public relations and entered into business, another storm came upon him. 
It struck him just where it was hardest to bear. It made him, as it were, the 
derision of men for the lime. And, as he was in the war and in the Presi- 



6i4 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



dential chair, he opened not his mouth in detraction, not even in answer, but 
stood and bore whatever was laid upon him. In all his financial troubles, 
never a murmuring word ! And then came disease, fateful disease, slowly 
undermining — going steadily down, down, and not a murmur! Sublime 
instance of fortitude and patience ! I cannot help praying for him in my 
thoughts. My thoughts rise up round about the throne in his behalf." 

Mr. Beecher's pathetic words brought tears to the eyes of most 
of his hearers, and it was plain to see that he had not a listener who 
did not sympathize with the grand old soldier in his suffering, and 
who did not heartily echo the great preacher's sentiments. 

Mr. J. A. J. Creswell, who was in General Grant's Cabinet as 
Postmaster-General for over five years, said: 

" I had more admiration for General Grant than for any man I ever saw, 
and it grieves me to the soul that he should be ending his days in suffering. I 
knew Lincoln and I knew Stanton, and these two, with Grant, made the dis- 
tinguished trio — Grant, the great soldier ; Stanton, the executive officer, and 
Lincoln, the great arbiter. Grant's qualities of true manliness were more pro- 
nounced than those of any man I ever knew. In all my close relations with 
hmi while I was a member of his Cabinet I never heard him say a harsh or 
petty thing; never heard him speak impulsively or use a profane word. His 
relations with his family were most delightful and charming. There never 
was a kinder or more indulgent father, and I never saw a more devoted couple 
than General and Mrs. Grant. Of course everybody knows how he loved his 
daughter. The meeting between them the other day was very touching, and 
the emotion shown by the old warrior exhibited the depth of his affection. 

"General Grant's great characteristic, however," continued Mr. Creswell, 
" was his sublime and unflinching courage. It was of that kind that no im- 
pression could be made upon it by opposition. He discharged his duties al- 
ways without selfishness, never stopping to consider how an action would 
affect him personally. All he wanted to know was. What is just ? What is 
right ? I remember an instance of this kind. At the time we had a postal 
treaty with Japan which gave us almost entire control of Japanese postal ser- 
vice. When their relations grew more intimate with us and with other nations 
they desired to have charge of their own service, and took steps in that direc- 
tion. After the Japanese Minister had talked with me about a treaty to that 
effect I went to Grant and laid the matter before him. I found that he had 
but one idea — to do what was right and just toward Japan.* I pointed out to 
him that if he should sign such a treaty we would be surrendering our control 
of the Japanese service and would be subjected to severe criticism, especially 
on the Pacific coast. 'But isn't it right?' was his reply; 'can there beany 
doubt about it ? ' I told him I only wanted to advise him of the consequences. 
He was satisfied that the treaty was just, and he signed it. I remember the 
time when he refused to sign the bill — which appeared to be a deflection.from 
the course we had determined upon — for the resumption of specie payment. 
There was an immense pressure brought to bear on Grant to sign it. Re- 
publicans of prominence urged it, thinkmg it would prove a satisfactory half- 
way measure. 1 think Grant's personal inclination was to sign it. Secretary 
Fish and myself were the only ones in the Cabinet who opposed its approval. 
At the Cabinet meeting, when it was considered, Grant drew from his desk a 
paper and read it. It was a message to Congress returning the bill with his 
signature. I said, ' I regret very much that you should feel it your duty to 
pursue such a course.' ' That isn't my view of the matter,' he replied. ' I 
wanted to do what was best and wanted to test myself, so I wrote all I could 



i 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 615 

in behalf of the bill, but it doesn't satisfy me,* and he refused to sign it. If he 
had sijrned ir, it would have caused us unlimited trouble. 

" Grant never lost his head. When we came so near being engaged in a 
war with Spain, on account of the ' Virginius' affair, there was a good deal of 
excitement at the Cabinet meeting, and a Vi^ar with Spain was imminent. 
Grant knew what war meant and by his coolness and sound judgment pre- 
vented it. He was assisted in this by the Spanish representative in this coun- 
try, who was a naval officer. He, too, knew what fighting meant, and these 
two really prevented a war. In circumstances where most men would be apt 
to lose their head — on the field of battle, for instance — Grant's mind seemed 
ail the stronger and clearer. Rawlins told me once that in the confusion of 
the batile-field Grant's orders were more explicit and clearer than when every- 
thing was quiet. He seemed never to get confused. I asked Grant once if, 
when giving orders for an engagement, he was not appalled by the great loss 
of life which would ensue. He replied, ' No, it was war, but I realized what it 
meant. I never i;dve such orders until I was satisfied that it was the best 
course to pursue, and then I was willing to shoulder the responsibility.' He 
added that many men failed as commanders simply because of an unwilling- 
ness to assume this responsibility. He spoke of two men who were fearless in 
this respect — Sherman and Sheridan. The latter in particular, he thought, was 
possessed with ample courage to do what seemed best and be responsible for 
the outcome. It wasn't rashness and heedlessness, but fearlessness in assum- 
ing responsibility for results.'' 

" How was General Grant as a writer ? '' asked the interviewer. 

" He wrote with great facility,'' replied Mr. Creswell. " His style, like his 
character, was the embodiment of directness. He used few metaphors and 
little ornamentation, and never two words where one would do, preferring 
Saxon words to Latin or French. He never hesitated for a word and always 
went right to the point. He wrote all his own papers, notwithstanding 
the report to the contrary, and all his messages were framed and written by 
him." 

" How was he as a talker? " asked the reporter. 

"Those who thou.t;ht Grant couldn't talk made a mistake," was the reply. 
" When he became intimate with one he would talk as much as any com- 
panion should. I have heard him do nearly all the talking for an hour or two. 
He was a good talker, but slow, sometimes hesitating for a word, something he 
never did in writing. He either had implicit confidence in a man or he had 
none. He was quick to form an estimate of a man, and if his suspicions were 
once aroused his firm jaw would shut like a trap, and he would remain cold 
and silent and by his appearance would chill a speaker, no matter how earnest 
he might be. He was always modest and unassuming, never presented him- 
self as a hero on any occasion, and never introduced mil tary subjects in con- 
versation. He had a very quick eye, and it was surprising to me how he could 
take in the whole topogiaphy at a glance. I remember once, while he was 
visiting me at my farm, I took him a long drive around the country. I took a 
by-road, intending to strike the main road, but missed my way. Finally I 
laughingly confessed it. 'Where did you want to go to?' he asked. 'I 
wanted to strike a road which would take me to the village, which lies in that 
direction.' He stood up in the buggy, and looking over the surrounding coun- 
try, said : — ' If you will let down the fence here, drive over this field and then 
through that gate up yonder I think you'll strike the road. You want to get 
on that ridge.' ' Why do you think so ?' I asked. ' Well, you say the village 
is in that direction (pointing) ; up there I see quite a settlement. The people 
who live there will have a way to reach the village, and they couldn't find a 
better way than along that ridge.' I did as he advised and found the road 
just where he said I would. I expressed surprise at his accuracy and he said: 



6l6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

— ' It has been part of my business to find roads. A good soldier should be 
able by seeing a portion of the country to form a good judgment of what the 
rest is.' '' 

Mr. S. H. M. Byers's recollections of Grant, as he appeared on 
and about the battle-field, are full of interest. He said: 

"While I was standing by the pontoon bridge, near Port Gibson, watching 
the boys cross the bayou, I heard cheering, and, looking round, saw an officer 
on horseback in a major-general's uniform. He dismounted and came over 
to the very spot where I was standing. I did not know his face, but something 
told me it was Grant, at that time the hero of the western army. This was the 
first time I saw Grant. I think I still possess some of the feeling that over- 
came me at that moment, as I stood so near to one who held our lives in his 
hands. I heard him speak: 'Men, push right along; close up fast ?nd hurry 
over.' Two or three men mounted on mules attempted to wedge past the 
soldiers on the bridge. Grant noticed it and quietly said, ' Lieutenant, send 
those men to the rear.' There was no nonsense, no sentiment. He was there 
for the one single purpose of getting that command across the river in the 
shortest time possible. On a horse near by, and among the still mounted staff, 
sat the general's son, a bright-looking lad of about 14 years. Fastened to his 
little waist by the broad yellow belt was his father's sword — that sword on 
whose clear steel was soon to be engraved Vicksburg, Spottsylvania, the 
Wilderness and Richmond. I next saw Grant on May 18, 1863, and this time 
at the battle of Champion Hills, in rear of Vicksburg. He had crossed the 
Mississippi River at Grand Gulf, and swung off east and north, had fought the 
battles of Port Gibson, Raymond and Jackson, and had overtaken Pember- 
ton's army hastening to the walls of Vicksburg. It was a very hot day and 
we had marched hard, slept little and rested none. Among the magnolias on 
Champion Hills, the enemy, 40,000 to 50,000 strong, turned on us. Sherman's 
corps was already engaged far on the right as we approached the field in that 
overpowering Mississippi sun. Our brigade was soon in line on the edge of a 
meadow, or open field sloping toward the woods where the enemy were con- 
cealed and steiidily firing upon us. We were in the most trying position of 
soldiers, for regulars even, being fired on without permission to return the 
shots. We were standing two files deep, bearing as patiently as we could, not 
a heavy but steady fire from infantry, while an occasional cannon-ball tore up 
the turf in front or behind us. A good many men were falling, and the 
wounded were being borne to the rear of the brigade, close to an old well, 
whose wooden curb seemed to offer the only protection from bullets on the 
exposed line. ' Colonel, move your men a little by the left flank,' said a quiet, 
thougn commanding voice. On looking round, I saw immediately behind us 
Grant, the commander-in chief, mounted on a beautiful bay mare, and fol- 
lowed by perhaps half a dozen of his staff. For some reason he dismounted, 
and most of his officers were sent off bearing orders to other quarters of the 
field. It was Grant under fire. The rattling musketry increased on our front, 
and grew louder, too, on the left flank. Grant had led his horse to the left, 
and thus kept near the company to which I belonged. He now stood leaning 
complacently against his favorite steed. His was the only horse near the line, 
and must, naturally, have attracted some of the enemy's fire. What if he 
should be killed, I thought to myself, and the army be left without its com- 
mander? In front of us was an enemy; behind us, and about us, and liable 
to overcome and crush us. were his reinforcements. For days we had been 
away from our base of supplies, and marching inside the enemy's lines. What 
if Grant should be killed and we be defeated here — in such a place and at 
such a time? I am sare everyone who recognized him wished him away; but 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 617 

there he stood — clear, calm and immovable. I was close enough to see his 
features. Earnest they were, but sign of inward movement there was none. 
It was the same cool, calculating face I had seen before at the bridge, the 
same careful, half-cynical face I afterward saw busied with affairs of state. 
Whatever there may have been in his feelings, there was no effort to conceal, 
there was no pretense, no trick-; whatever that face was, it was natural. Men 
have often asked if Grant was personally brave in battle. Bravery, like many 
other human qualities, is comparative. That Grant was fearless in battle would 
be hard to say. W he possessed true bravery, he also possessed fear. Brave 
men are not fearless men. He was eminently and above all things a cool 
man. and that, I take it, was, in the exciting times in which he lived, the first 
great key to his success. He was called a born soldier, but was, in fact, nothing 
of the kind. He was simply a man of correct methods and a fixed will." 

President Johnson sent for General Grant on the morning of 
August 12, 1867, and told him that his relations with Secretary 
Stanton were such that neither personal nor official intercourse could 
continue between them, and had, in fact, practically ceased for some 
time ; that this rupture embarrassed the President in the discharge of 
his official duties and was hurtful to the public interest, by reason 
of the important functions devolving upon the War Department in 
consequence often States being under military government; that he 
did not wish to stimulate public agitation by exercising what he re- 
garded as an undoubted right under the constitution, to remove the 
Secretary from office, but would content himself by a suspension 
under the provisions of the tenure of office act, trusting to the good 
sense and patriotism of the Senate, when it met, to relieve the Gov- 
ernment and himself from an intolerable situation, if Mr. Stanton 
should not meanwhile resign his office voluntarily. The President 
told General Grant that he wished him to assume the office and 
duties of Secretary of War, pending the suspension and prospective 
removal of Mr. Stanton, with the double object of assuring the pub- 
lic that nothing sinister was intended by the change, as had been 
charged by a partisan press, and of conserving legitimate military 
interests by putting at the head of the War Department the imme- 
diate commander of the army. 

General Grant argued against suspending Mr. Stanton while Con- 
gress was not in session, deeming the time unfortunately chosen, if 
the pubHc tranquillity was to be regarded, and offered his services 
in bringing about a modus vivendi until a separation between the 
head of the administration and his unwelcome Cabinet Minister 
could be effected in some less disturbing manner than that pro- 
posed. But Mr. Johnson was in a flame toward the Secretary and 
would hear of nothing less than his suspension, and held that he was 
measurably compromising his own dignity and the integrity of his 
office in resorting to anything short of a summary dismissal. Be- 
coming satisfied that the President could not be induced to change 
his purpose, General Grant reluctantly consented to accept the 



6l8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

ad interim appointment, stipulating that he should be permitted to 
go to the Secretary and break the news to him. Mr. Johnson agreed 
to this at once, for the sole idea of the moment was to get Mr. Stan- 
ton out of the War Department, and he cared naught about the in- 
cidental details. 

General Grant went to the War Department with his appointment 
of Secretary of War ad interim, vice Stanton thereby suspended, and 
explained the imperative circumstances under which he had accepted 
it. Mr. Stanton acquiesced in the propriety of his action and, after 
executing a formal protest, left him in possession of the office and 
the records. 

When the Senate refused to assent to the removal of Secretary 
Stanton, General Grant surrendered his temporary charge to the 
latter, which act led to a controversy with President Johnson so bitter 
on the latter's part that, like the two Adamses, he refused to show 
General Grant subsequently the courtesies usual from a retiring 
President to his successor. 

When General Grant was raised to the grade of Lieutenant- 
General and appointed to the command of all the armies of the 
United States he was called to Washington to confer with the 
President as to the mode in which the war should be conducted. 
Despite a general confidence in the final success of the national 
cause, there were contingencies and anxieties that President Lincoln 
felt should be known to and shared by the military leader in whom 
the hopes of the country were now placed. Secretary Seward had 
convincing reasons for knowing that the danger of foreign interven- 
tion had not passed away, and that any serious check to the federal 
arms might bring it upon us so suddenly and effectively as to com- 
pletely turn the tide of events. Secretary Chase was holding 
gloomy views concerning the financial future, owing to the enor- 
mous and steadily growing cost of the federal armaments. Secre- 
tary Stanton, who never permitted himself to think of but one end, 
had begun to doubt whether the means to that end would hold out 
in sufficient measure and duration. President Lincoln embodied in 
his own person the disquieting knowledge and the fears of all his 
heads of departments. General Grant, away off in the West, hold- 
ing little official communication with Washington, and personally a 
stranger to the members of the administration, had comparatively lit- 
tle knowledge of the general situation, and was of that mental habit 
that concentrates a man's thoughts upon the thing of the moment. 

He went out to General Meade's headquarters, and as the result 
of a prolonged conference with that commander, in which he gained 
some new views of a new situation, he resolved not to displace 
Meade, either by assuming the immediate command himself or by 
the assignment of another to the command. It was 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 619 

characteristic of Grant that, having made up his mind on this im- 
portant matter, his decision was full and final. In spite of assur- 
ances from friends at Washington, in the West and in Meade's own 
army, that the removal of that officer was little short of a necessity, 
he never entertained the thought of displacing him from first to 
last, and so little did he interfere with the iniernal administration of 
the Army of the Potomac that he did not propose Sheridan for the 
command of the cavalry until he learned that Meade wi.^hcd a 
change, and although he re[)eatedly made known to Meade his 
wish to displace Warren from the command of the Fifth Corps, he 
yielded to the tenacity with which Meade clung to that officer, until 
Sheridan took the matter into his own hands in an emergency. 

Before opening the campaign, he startled the authorities at Wash- 
ington by asking that General McClellan might be restored to active 
duty, and became so urgent about it, taking such a high view of 
McClellan's military abilities, that the President and Mr. Seward 
supported him, and even Secretary Chase stood- neutral. But the 
passionate and fiery invective of Secretary Stanton prevailed over 
all, and the Lieutenant-General was firmly informed that General 
McClellan was an impossibility in any military situation. The Sec- 
retary of War was no! so unyielding as to General Buell, but that 
stubborn soldier refused all overtures unless the injustice done him 
by the War Department should be formally as well as substantially 
expiated, and in this pursuit of a shadow lost his last chance of 
crowning a military career full of merit, but also full of misfor- 
tune. 

The earlier results of General Grant's Eastern campaign were 
well calculated to cause him to share the anxieties of those in 
power at Washington, but when, on the very first day, Lee doubled 
up the division of Ricketts and threatened, for the time being, to 
lead a considerable part of the Army of the Potomac to Richmond 
in a manner unexpected, he was the one calm man of thousands — 
so stolidly calm as to mingle a touch of exasperation with surprise 
in the minds of bystanders. And yet his calmness was not of the 
unreasonable kind, for he believed in the leadership and discipline 
of the troops, and deemed them equal to the repelling of the fierce 
assault and the reformation of the broken line of battle, and his 
cool calculation was in due course exemplified. Even on that 
memorable day when, for the first time, the spirit seemed beaten 
out of the Army of the Potomac by repeated and murderous as- 
saults upon Petersburg, he calmly remarked to the agonized Meade 
that having now proved the impossibility of carrying the works, it 
was useless to make further attempts. 

Three things are essential to the proper understanding of this 
remark: — First, that the day before the arrival and assault the 



620 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Federal scouts had reported that Lee's army had not come up, and 
that there were less than ten thousand men in the works ; second, 
that the first assault had satisfied Meade that Lee was there in force, 
and that further attempt to storm the work was useless ; third, that 
in consequence of the failure of the assaults it took ten months 
longer to effect the intended result at a time when General Grant 
was being almost daily reminded from Washington that nothing 
was so important as to bring the war to a close at once. In fact, so 
urgent was the necessity for discounting time that the exchange of 
prisoners was stopped, in hopes to bring the Confederacy to an end 
by dearth of men to fill the insurgent ranks. 

One more instance of Grant's quiet courage. When the powder 
boat was exploded at City Point, filling the air about him with 
smoke and exploding shells, he rose from his seat, looked about to 
see what he could of the cause of the noise and destruction, and, a 
few minutes afterward, in company with Ingalls, his quartermaster- 
general and bosom friend, he was do'iVn on the blazing wharf, direct- 
ing and helping in the extinguishment of the flames before they 
reached the great piles of ammunition, covered by tarpaulins, to- 
ward which the fire was rolling. 

Senator Hawley was asked for some reminiscence of the Republi- 
can National Convention of 1868, and General Grant's first nomi- 
nation for the Presidency. He gave the following : 

"At the Republican National Convention of 1868 all who were present will 
remember the absokite unanimity and enthusiasm with which General Grant 
received his first formal nomination for the Presidency. It was with difficulty 
that the Convention could be restrained and confined to the regular orderly 
procedure, for the vast multitude seemed determined to anticipate the pro- 
ceedings, and nominate the General with one great shout ; but those who 
desired a more impressive and effective proceeding restrained all irregularities, 
and in due course of things the name of every State and Territory was called, 
and the leader of each delegation formally gave its full vote for Ulysses S. 
Grant, each successive announcement being received with a roll (if applause, 
and at the summing up of the whole, the Convention broke into a tremendous 
and overwhelming demonstration that died away and rose again for many 
minutes. It was but recording the unanimous wish of the party ; it was a result 
which no man contrived and which no man could have prevented. As presi- 
dent of the Convention, it became my duty to lead the committee that was 
instructed to proceed to Washington and formally notify the General. 

" Arriving in Washington, the committee requested me to call upon the 
General and ask him for his wishes concerning the more formal proceedings. 
The late Senator Ferry, of Connecticut, accompanied me. General Grant 
received us with his usual quiet and simple cordiality, and we sat with him for 
possibly an hour in his library. The arrangements for the next day were 
easily made, but the General seemed inclined to talk and, of course, we were 
only too glad to listen. Some of his expressions I remember with exactness. 
Others I can give correctly in substance. 

" He said : ' If this were simply a matter of personal preference and satisfac- 
tion, I would not wish to be President. I have now arrived at the extreme 
hmit of the ambition of a soldier. I was at the head of the army of the United 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 621 

States during the great decisive war. I remain the head of that army, with 
the country united and at peace, as I beheve it is to be for many years— I hope 
forever. The people speak kindly of me, even our fellow-citizens of the South, 
many of them. If I remain where I am, as time passes and the animosities of 
the war die away, I do not see why I should not be at peace with all men. 
The pay of the position abundantly provides for myself and my family. What 
more could a man wish ? To go into the Presidency opens altogether a new 
field to me, in which there is to be a new strife to which I am not trai»ied It 
may be that I should fail in giving satisfaction to the country. Then I should 
go out at the end of my political service, having reduced the number of my 
friends and lost my position as a soldier. That is a very disagreeable r-ossi- 
bility. But there is nothing to be said. There is no choice left for me. There 
is nothing else to do.' This he repeated several times. ' I have no choice 
whatever but submission.' 

" He spoke with a serious respect for the great place and a sense of its 
responsibilities. It is impossible that the gratitude of the people and the 
unanimity with which he was sought should have been otherwise than aoree- 
able to any man. But at that moment he seemed to be dwelling uporT the 
pleasant things which he surrendered in accepting the nomination.^and yet to 
go forward with the simple obedience of a thorough soldier. 

" When the committee called upon General Grant the next day I held in my 
hand the manuscript of the few remarks in which I made the formal announce- 
ment. The General replied without notes and without hesitation. The 
accurate stenographic report shows that he replied with as much aptness as 
though he had taken a day to prepare. 

" The most precious autograph in my collection is the letter of acceptance 
which was addressed to me as the president of the Convention, and in which 
occurs the famous expression, ' Let us have peace.' -It is all in his own hand 
and contains only one correction." 

Among the many writings of the dead General during his long ill- 
ness, the following remarkable document has been kept religiously 
secret by Dr. Douglas until July 28th, when he gave it to the press, 
explaining that General Grant wrote it in his presence ^a Thursday, 
July 2: 

" I ask you not to show this to any one, unless tne physicians you consult 
with, until the end. Particularly, I want it kept from my family. If known to 
one mm, the papers will get it. It would only distress them almost beyond 
endurance to know it, and by reflex would distress me. I have not changed 
my mind, materially, since I wrote you before in the same strain ; now, how- 
ever, I know that I gain strength some days, but when I do go back, it is 
beyond where I starlied to improve. I think the chances are very decidedly in 
favor of you being able to keep me alive until the change of weather toward 
Winter. Of course, there are contingencies that might arise at any time that 
would carry me off very suddenly. The most probable of these is choking. 
Under the circumstances life is not worth the living. I am very thankful (glad 
was written for thankful, but scratched out, and thankful substituted) to have 
been spared this long, because it has enabled me to practically complete the 
work in which I take so much interest. I cannot stir up strength enough to 
review it, and make additions and subtractions that would suggest themselves 
to me, and are not likely to suggest themselves to any one else. 

" Under the above circumstances, I will be the happiest, the most pain I can 
avoid. 

" If there is to be any extraordinary cure, such as some people believe there 
is to be, it will develop itsalf. I would say, therefore, to you and your 
colleagues, to make me as comfortable as you can. If it is within God's 



62 2 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

providence that I should go now, I am ready to obey His call without a 
murmur I should prefer going now to enduring my present suffering for a 
single day without hope of recovery. As I have stated. I am thankful for the 
providential extension of my time to enable me to continue my work. I am 
further thankful, and in a greater degree thankful, because it has enabled me 
to see for myself the happy harmony which has so suddenly sprung up between 
those engaged but a few short years ago in deadlv conflict. It has been an 
inestimable blessing to one to hear the kind expressions toward me. in person, 
from all parts of our country, from people of all nationalities, of all religions, 
and of no religion, of Confederates and of National troops alike, of soldiers' 
organizations, of mechanical, scientific, religious and other societies, em- 
bracing almost every citizen in the land. They have brought joy to my heart, 
if they have not effected a cure. So, to you and your colleagues. I acknowl- 
edge my indebtedness for having brought me through the valley of the shadow 
of death, to enable one to witness these things. 

[Signed] " U. S. Grant. 

"Mt. McGregor, N. Y., July 2d, 1885." 

As an interesting recollection of General Grant, Major Charles 
McCann, of Confederate General Pickett's staff, who is authority 
for the statement, related the following : 

" Immediately after the surrender at Appomattox information reached Major- 
General George E. Pickett, of Virginia, that Governor Holden, of North Caro- 
lina was about to make a requisition for him as a fugitive from justice, to answer 
charges of the murder of eight North Carolinians by execution in the neighbor- 
hood of Newberne. in that State. These North Carolinians were Confederate 
deserters, captured in the Federal service, who had been tried by court-martial 
and summarily shot for desertion. 

" General Pickett, fearing the power of Holden and knowing his influence 
with President Johnson and Secretary Stanton, took the train for Washington 
in order to lay the matter before General Grant, as commander-in-chief of the 
United States Army. Pickett was very naturally nervous and suspicious as to 
the result of his visit, not knowing what course General Grant would pursue in 
the matter. He immediately called, however, on Adjutant-General Rawlings — 
Grant being absent at the time — and stated his case. Rawlings advised him 
to call early the next morning. It was a long and anxious night for Pickett. 

" The next morning he took his place promptly among the crowd of visitors 
at army headquarters to await the arrival of General Grant, At length a com- 
motion on the stairway indicated the approach of some one in authority. It 
was Grant — army hat and cigar. Pickett was on the landing of the stairwav, and 
as Grant was about to pass he halted, and, recognizing Pickett, said, extending 
his hand: ' How are you, Pickett?' They shook hands cordiaPy and vigor- 
ously. It was the first time they had met since 1845, ^^ Vancouver's Island, 
and Pickett, when afterward relating his experience, said that he immediately 
felt much easier. 

" When it came to Pickett's time to go in Grant asked, ' Rawlings, what is 
it Pickett wants ?' Rawlings at once briefly related the case, when Grant 
promptly and with marked emphasis said: ' Rawlings. give him full protection.' 
Then, turning to Pickett, he said : ' Come around and see me ; I am busy now 
and can't talk much.' Pickett thanked the General and returned to his family 
at Richmond, feeling a much happier man than when he started. Nothing 
more was heard of Holden's demand for Pickett." 

Colonel John A. McCaull, the opera manager, was in command 
of the Confederate troops which raided Chambersburg and burned 
the house of Colonel A. K. McClure. At a dinner which took place 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 623 

at Philadelphia in April, 1885, these two frentlemen sat side by side, 
and each rose to testify in tender but glowing words to the nobility, 
simplicity and magnanimity of General Grant's character. Colonel 
McCaull said : 

" When the war was ended I had the honor to be the humble secretary of 
the Virginia Commission which called upon General Grant to ask about the 
terms of readmission of the Commonwealth. I shall never forget the simple 
manner in which he said: 'Gentlemen, Virginia, that noble State, was one of 
the last to leave the Union. I hope sincerely that she will be the first to be re- 
admitted.' At that time the politics of the State were unsettled, and it was a 
question whether she would come back as a Republican or as a Conservative — 
what you call Democratic — State. The reconstruction committee was anxious 
that she should be a certain Republican Stnte before she was admitted, and 
her admission was postponed. The next day General Grant, hearing of the 
action of the committee, went down to his room in the Capitol and sent for 
General Butler and Mr. Blaine, both leading members of the committee, and 
said : ' Gentlemen, the readmission of Virginia to the Union is not a question of 
politics. It is more than that. Virginia is a grand State. She asks to be 
allowed to come back in the Union. Her readmission affects our cornmon 
country, and in the name of our common country, in the name of patriotism, I 
ask you to admit Virginia.' " 

Colonel McCaull added: 

" I never was so impressed in my life with the simplicity, sincerity and 
patriotism of any one as with the earnest manner in which General Grant made 
this patriotic request." 

Colonel McClure followed with an account of the meeting of 
Grant and Lee. He said : 

" The day before the surrender at Appomattox General Grant received a 
letter from General Lee, asking for a meeting. Of course he knew it could 
mean only one thing — an offer of surrender. He sat down and wrote an 
answer agreeing to the meeting. The next day General Lee and his stalf met 
General Grant in their full uniforms. He was in plain undress suit, without 
sword or other arms. Every one who knows General Grant knows that no one 
understood better what military etiquette was. He knew that according to 
etiquette General Lee could not properly tender him his sword then, and there 
is no doubt in my mind, and none in the minds of those who know General 
Grant best, that he went in undress uniform deliberately and intentionally, and 
that by so doing he meant to let his deed, rather than his words, express the 
intention. Nothing could exceed this in delicacy and magnanimity. In the 
history of the world no conqueror was ever so magnanimous to the conquered.'' 

A San Francisco Ch'oiiicle writer says: 

" Military reputations are curious things. Soldiers know that Lee was a mere 
desk general, without plan or dash. Before the war old General Scott, who 
loved him, used to say that, with the exception of himself, Bob Lee was the 
only man in this country who could handle fifty thousand men. He took this 
reputation in the Southern army, and he was idolized. He was a courteous, 
dignified man. His soldiers trusted him implicitly, and he had the inner 
lines, so that it was reckoned he had won a victory every time he escaped 
annihilation. 

"President Davis was deferential to him, and the corps commanders re- 
garded him as omniscient and invincible. But. in point of fact, there is not 
one of his battles which military students will hereafter be required to study. 



624 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

So with Stonewall Jackson. In the Southern army he was enterprising, auda- 
cious, swift in action; but a man might easil)'- make a reputation when he has 
only commanders like Banks and Fremont to encounter. If Stonewall Jack- 
son had lived long enough to meet such men as Sherman and Sheridan, his 
fame might not have stood as high as it does. 

"When our war broke out, the eyes of soldiers were fixed upon McClellan, 
Rosecrans, Stone, McDowell and Buell. These were to be the coming men. 
They all proved failures. Grant cut no figure in Mexico. Sherman was said 
to be a crank. Sheridan was unknown. It required circumstances to develop 
them. Grant showed, from the first, the intuitive capacity of the born sol- 
dier. 

"After the fall of Fort Donelson, a brother-in-arms took the liberty of draw- 
ing his attention to the awful risk he had run by deviating from the rules of 
war. The General replied : ' Yes, I know all that ; but I knew the men on 
the other side, and I took the chances. You do not suppose I would have 
acted so if Lee had been in command of the fort?' So when he resolved on 
his march round Vicksburg by way of the river, he knew that he was acting 
contrary to the rules of war; but he took the risks, and for fear of interference 
from Washington, he would not let General Halleck know what he was doing 
till he was past recall. Sure enough, as soon as telegrams could reach him, 
Halleck countermanded the movement; but it was too late, and in due course 
Vicksburg fell." 

Captain Frank Smith, a soldier of Lee's army, copied the terms 
of surrender between General U. S. Grant and R. E. Lee from the 
orio-inal document. They are as follows : 



'fc.' 



Headquarters Army of the United States, | 



Appomattox C. H., Va., April 9, 1865. 
" Gen'l R. E. Lee, Comd'g C. S. A. ^ 1 t. 

" General : In accordance with the substance of my letter to you of the 9th 
inst., I propose to receive the surrender of the Army of No. Va. on the follow- 
ing terms, to-wit: Roll of all the officers and men to be made in duplicate, 
one copy to be given to an officer to be designated by me, the other to be re- 
tained by such officer or officers as you may designate, the officers to give 
their individual paroles not to take up arms against the Government of the 
United States until properly exchanged, and each company or regimental com- 
mander to sign a like parole for the men of their commands. The arms, 
artillery and public property are to be stacked and turned over to the officers ap- 
pointed by me to receive them. This will not embrace the side arms of the 
officers nor the private horses or baggage. This done, each officer and man 
will be allowed to return to their homes, not to be disturbed by the United 
States authority as long as they observe their parole and the laws in force 
where they may reside. Very respectfully, "U. S. Grant, 

(Official.) "Lieutenant-General. 

" O. Latrobe, a. a. G. 

"John Stephenson. A. D. C. 

" John W. Kerr, A. A. G." 

" Headquarters Army No. Va., | 
" Special Order No.— , . ^ April 10, 1865. | 

"The following special order is published for the mformation of all parties 

concerned: ^ tt c •> 

" PIeadquarters Armies of the U. S., ) 
" Special Order No.— In the Field, loth April. 1865. ) 

"AH officers and men of the Confederate service paroled at Appomattox C. 
H Va who to reach their homes are compelled to pass through the lines of 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 625 

the Union armies will be allowed to do so, and to pass free on all Government 
and military railroads. 

" By com'd of Lieut.-Gen'l Grant. 

" E. S. Park, Lieut.-Col. & A. A. G. 
-' By com'd of Gen'l R, E. Lee. 

" C. S. Venable, a. a. G. 
(Official.) 
''■ O. Latrobe, a. a. G. 
" John Stephenson, A. A. G. 
"JNO. W. Kerr, A. A. G. 

" Copied from the original at Appomattox Court-House, for Frank M. Smith, 
of Company E, Fifth Texas Volunteers, A. N. Va., by Lieut. Baker." 

General Adam Badeau, who has been one of the most constant 
attendants at General Grant's residence during his illness, says: 

" At the close of the war the man who had led the victorious armies was not 
forty-three years of age. He had not changed in any essential qualities from 
the captain in Mexico or the merchant in Galena. The characteristics of the 
man were exactly those he manifested as a soldier — directness and steadiness 
of purpose, clearness and certainty of judgment, self-reliance and immutable 
determination. 

" I asked him once how he could be so calm in terrible emergencies after 
giving an order for a corps to go into battle or directing some intricate ma- 
noeuvre. He replied that he had done his best, and could do no better. He 
had done what he could, and he gave himself no anxiety about the judgment 
or the decision. 

"On the night of the battle of the Wilderness, when the right of his army 
had been broken and turned, after he had given his orders for new dispositions, 
he went to his tent and slept calmly till morning. * * Not that he was in- 
different to human life or human suffering. I have been with him when he left a 
hurdle-race, unwilling to see men risk their necks needlessly, and he came 
away from one of Blondin's exhibitions at Niagara angry and nervous at the 
sight of one poor wretch in gaudy clothes crossing the whirlpool on a wire. 
But he could subordinate such sensations when necessity required it." 

In another place Badeau writes of Grant : 

" His relation with the troops was peculiar. He never made speeches to 
the soldiers, and, of course, never led them himself into battle, after he 
assumed his high command. But in every battle they saw him certainly once 
or twice far to the front as exposed as they, for there always seemed to come 
a time in each engagement when he was unwilling to use the eyes or ears of 
another, but must observe for himself in order to determine. The soldiers saw 
all this. They knew, too, that when he rode around in camp it meant action, 
and the sight of his blue overcoat, exactly like their own, it was a signal to 
prepare for battle. 

"After the batde of the wilderness he rode at night along the road where 
Hancock's veterans lay, and when the men discovered it was Grant, and that 
his face was turned toward Richmond, they knew in a moment they were not 
to retire acrose the Rapidan as so often before, and they rose in the darkness 
and cheered until the enemy thought it was a night attack and came out and 
opened fire. When the works were carried at Petersburg, their enthusiasm 
was, of course, unbounded, and whenever they caught a glimpse of him in the 
Appomattox campaign the cheers were vociferous. After the surrender of Lee 
they began without orders to salute him with cannon, and he directed the firing 
to cease, less it should wound the feelings of the prisoners, who, he said, were 
40 



62 6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

once again our countrymen. This sentiment he retained. Soon after the close 
of the war I was present when a committee of Congress, headed by Charles 
Sumner, waited on him to propose that a picture should be painted of the sur- 
render of Lee to be placed in the rotunda of the Capitol. But he told them he 
should never consent so far as he was concerned, to any picture being placed 
in the Capitol to commemorate a victory in which our own countrymen were 
the losers." 

Mr. Thomas Donaldson, a friend of General Grant, thus describes 
his characteristics, appearance, manners and his virtues : 

" General Grant was about five feet seven inches in height. His shoulders 
were broad and his body, after his 50th year, rather inclined to be rotund. 
His weight in 1868 was about 150 pounds; in 1877, 185 pounds ; in 1883, 185 
pounds ; in December. 1884, 152 pounds. His head was round, full and large, 
with ears well formed and prominent. His hair, originally brown, began to 
age, along with his whiskers, in 1875, ^'"^^ became nearly gray after his pecuni- 
ary misfortunes of i8S_[.. His beard for twenty five years was reddish brown 
and worn short and full, with moustache. His eyes were blue, his nose rather 
large and Grecian in shape. His lower jaw was square and massive. 

" His face had a kindly expression and bore strongly marked lines about the 
corners of the eyes and mouth. His manner of speech was slow and with a 
slight hesitancy. He was modest by nature and cultivation as well. He fre- 
quently expressed his contempt for ostentation and avoided loud men as com- 
panions. His face had the same mark upon it as there was upon President 
Lincoln's — a large mole on the right side and near the corner of the mouth. 

" His voice was thin and peculiar to himself, never loud, but clear. Still, at 
the end of a sentence or speech he sometimes ran his words closely together. 
A first glance at his face gave but small indication of what or who he was, but 
it always forced a second look. There was nothing in his personal appearance 
to show a man above the average of our intelligent class. Sympathy and 
affection were deep-set in him. As brave as a lion, in all the war facing death 
constantly, not a loose word escaped him. His blue-gray eyes put on a more 
far-away look and his jaws set the firmer 

" When he shook hands with you — after 1869 — he drew gently back. A 
ruffian amongst the visitors at the White House one day in 1869 grasped his 
hand as if to shake it and attempted to break his arm by wrenching it. His 
hands were small, seldom gloved, and his feet small and neatly bootc d. In 
his dress he was plain and simple. His clothes were generally dark. His coat 
was a frock or cutaway. 

" March 4, 1869, when first inaugurated President, General Grant made his 
first appearance in a tall silk hat. He always wore one after that. 

'' His watch-chain was a single strand of gold. In the army he wore a blue 
blouse and no sword, a plain slouch hat, dark trousers and top-boots. Even 
his horse equipments did not indicate his rank. When he went to Europe in 
1878 he was compelled to buy a new uniform, as his old one was worn out. He 
bought but three while general of the army. 

"At table he ate but little, and that of the plainest food, and in the latter 
years of his life used no wine. As an escort for ladies, the assurance of one 
of the brightest and most lovely women who has graced Washington social 
life — that 'General Granfwas the most acceptable of all the escorts she had 
ever had at dinner' — is warrant enough for the statement that he was a 
gentleman in social life and at the table. 

" He was fond of children and they of him — because of positive evidences of 
benevolence of both head and heart. He stood fatigue. readily, and could go 
without food or sleep for a long time. On horseback he sat easily and rode 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 62/ 

with grace as West Point men usually do. He had a keen memory for those 
who abused him, either by speech or in the press, and never forcrot them He 
hated and liked with manly vigor. He had one old-time virtue, fast becomino- 
obsolete, developed in the highest— he liked his friends and would stand bv thein 

" His memory for men and events was clear and strong. A nephew of a 
member of Mr. Lincoln's cabinet, a private in a Maine battery in the Army of 
the Potomac, came in his private^s jacket to visit his uncle, with Mr. Lincoln 
and other members of his Cabinet on a steamer at City Point, Va He dined with 
them all, including General Grant. Four years afterward General Grant met 
him in the street m Washington and said,—' Why, Mr. Fessenden, how are you >' 

" In 1869 the reduction of the regular army to a peace establishment ren- 
dered SIX hundred officers superfluous. But when Congress proceeded to mus- 
ter them out. General Grant said,—' Stop, if you remove them I will appoint 
every one of them to the best civic positions within my province.' Concrress 
took the alarm and retired them with one year's pay each. ^ 

*' He had an affectionate regard for the soldiers who had served with him • 
Sherman was his loving friend, to whom he used to say, ' When this affair 
(any ceremony at which they were present) is over come around and let's have 
a talk.' Sheridan he pronounced 'the best soldier of .the century.' Jealousy 
was not an element of General Grant's make-up, 

'; He liked horses, but preferred to drive them himself. In 1877, when he 
arrived at Liverpool, a four-in-hand met him. He got in, rem.arking to Consul 
Packard, ' Ah, I would rather be behind a pair, in a buggy, with you for a 
guest.' He had in early days of his public hfe a reputation for marked reti- 
cence. He was called the ' Silent Man.' He was not a reticent man in 
private life. His conversational powers developed rapidly and he was a splen- 
did talker. The few speeches he made in public, beginning after 1869, were 
models in brevity, force, and compact expression. Directness is evident in all 
that he ever did. His reserve was natural, and an indication of the gentleness 
with which he commanded and controlled. In acting upon any important 
event m civil life, or in the war, he never by sign or word indicated that there 
was the least chance for a failure in what he was undertaking. 

" The best picture of him up to 1866 is the photograph taken bv F. Gutekun.^t, 
of Philadelphia, in that year, in full uniform and w'earing crape as mournin^r for 
Mr. Lincoln. One taken by Tabor, of San Francisco, in 1879, also does'him 
justice, but the majority of the photographs of him indicate a much larger and 
broader man than he was. In early life his path was over rugged ways, but 
his adversities were lessons to him, and his failures eventually became ele- 
ments in his success and made him the product and result of more than 300 
years of Anglo-Saxon life on this continent. 

" The greatest man of this century in the Anglo-Saxon race— whom history 
will place along with the higher and favored few, was in his every-day life a 
common-place, simple, loveable man. He reached the summit of earthly glory, 
and in doing it practiced the methods and ways of a gentleman. 

The following are notable extracts from Grant's lettters^ 
speeches and conversations : 

"Yours of this date, proposing an armistice and the appointment of commis- 
sioners to settle on the terms of capitulation, is just received. No terms except 
unconditional and immediate surrender can be accepted. I propose to move 
immediately on your works. I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant." 
— To General Buckner,com7nanding Fort Do7tclso7i, February 16, 1862, 

" General : Your note of this date, just received, proposes an armistice of sev- 
eral hours for the purpose of arranging terms of capitulation through commis- 
sioners to be appointed, etc. The effusion of blood you propose stopping by 



628 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

this course can be ended at any time you may choose by an unconditional sur- 
render of the city and garrison. Men who have shown so much endurance 
and courage as those now in Vicksburg will also challenge the respect of an 
adversary, and, I can assure you, will be treated with all the respect due to 
them as prisoners of war. I do not favor the proposition of appointing com-' 
missioners to arrange terms of capitulation, because I have no other terms 
than those indicated above."- To Geiieral Pemberton. commanding at Vicksburg, 
1863. 

" No theory of mv own will ever stand in the way of my executing, in good 
faith, any order I may receive from those in authority over me." — Letter io Secre- 
tary Chase ^ July ^ 1864. 

" I feel no inclination to retahate for the offenses of irresponsible persons ; 
but if it is the policy of any general entrusted with the command of troops to 
show no quarter, or to punish with death prisoners taken in battle, I will ac- 
cept the issue." — Letter to Confederate General Buckner, 1863. 

" The stability of this government and the unity of this nation depend solely 
on the cordial support and the earnest loyalty of the people." — Address to Loyal 
Citizens of Memphis, August, 1863. 

" I propose to fight it out on this line if it takes all summer." — /;/ the Wilder- 
ness, May II, 1864. 

" Victory has crowned your valor and secured the purpose of your patriotic 
hearts, and with the gratitude of your countrymen and the highest honors a 
great and free nation can accord, you will soon be permitted to return to your 
homes and families conscious of having discharged the highest duty of 
American citizens. To achieve these glorious triumphs, and to secure to your- 
selves, your fellow-countrymen and posterity the blessings of free institutions, 
tens of thousands of vour gallant comrades have fallen and sealed the priceless 
legacy with their lives. The graves of these a grateful nation bedews with 
tears,' honors their memories and will ever cherish and support their stricken 
families." — Address to the Armies, June 2, 1865. 

" It has been mv fortune to seethe armies of both the West and East fight 
battles, and from what I have seen, I know there is no difference in their fight- 
ing qualities. All that it was possible for men to do in battle they have done. 
^ "^* All have a proud record, and all sections can well congratulate them- 
selves and each other for having done their full share in restoring the suprem- 
acy of law over every foot of territory belonging to the United States. Let 
them hope for perpetual peace and harmony with that enemy whose manhood, 
however mistaken the cause, drew forth such herculean deeds of valor." — Re- 
port on the Operations of the Armies, 1865. 

" This is a Republic where the will of the people is the law of the land. I beg 
that their voice may be heard."— Z^/Z^r to President Johnson, 1865. 

"Peace and universal prosperitv, its sequence, with economy of administra- 
tion, will lighten the burden of taxation, while it certainly reduces the national 
debt. Let us have ^i^dicer— Letter Accepting Nomination, 1868. 

" I shall on all subjects have a pohcy to recommend, none to enforce against 
the will of the people. Laws are to govern all alike— those opposed to as well 
as those in favor of them. I know no method to secure the repeal of bad or 
obnoxious laws so effectual as \he\r sinci ^-^Qcniionr—Lnaugural Address, 
1869. 

" To protect the national honor, every dollar of the government indebtedness 
should be paid in gold, unless otherwise especially stipulated in the contract. 
Let it be understood that no repudiatior of one farthing of our public debt will 
be trusted in public ^\d.zts:'— Inaugural Address, 1869. 



RECOLLECTIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 629 

" We are a Republic whereof one man is as good as another before the law. 
Under such a form of government it is of the greatest importance that all should 
be possessed of education and intelligence enough to cast a vote with a right 
understanding of its meaning." — Annual Message, 1871. 

" Let us all labor to add all needful guarantees for the more perfect security 
of free thought, free speech and free press, pure morals, unfettered religious 
sentiments and of equal rights and privilci^es to all men, irrespective of nation- 
ality, color or religion. Encourage free schools and resolve that not one dollar 
of money appropriated to their support, no matter how raised, shall be appro- 
priated to the support of any sectarian school." — Address at Reunion of Army 
of the Teniiessee, 1875. 

" The compulsory support of the free schools and the disfranchisement of 
all who cannot read and write the English language, after a fixed probation, 
would meet my hearty approval." — Annual Message, 1876. 

" I am not a believer in any artificial method of making paper money equal 
to coin when the coin is not owned or held ready to redeem the promise to 
pay, for paper money is nothing more than promises to pay." — Veto Message 
of Currency Bill. 

" Nothing would afford me greater happiness than to know, as I believe will 
be the case, that at some future day the nations of the earth will agree upon 
some sort of congress, which shall take cognizance of international^ questions 
of difficulty, and whose decisions will be as binding as the decision of our 
Supreme Court are binding onus.'' — -To the International Arbitration Ufiion, 
Birniingham. 

" I recognize the fact that whatever there is of greatness in the United States, 
or indeed in any other country, is due to the labor performed. The laborer is 
the author of all greatness and wealth. Without labor there would be no 
government, or no leading class, or nothing to preserve. With us, labor is 
regarded as highly respectable." — To the Iron-Foioiders' Society, Birmitighani, 
1877. 

" If our country could be saved or ruined by the efforts of any one man, we 
should not have a country and we should not now be celebrating our Fourth 
of July.'' — Speech at Hamburgh 1878. 

" The humblest soldier who carried a musket is endtled to as much credit for 
the results of the war as those who were in command." — Speech at Hamburg, 
1878. 

" With a people as honest and proud as the Americans, and with so much 
common sense, it is always a mistake to do a thing not entirely right for the sake 
of expediency. 

"When I was in the army I had a physique that could stand anythmg. 
Whether I slept on the ground or in a tent, whether I slept one hour or ten m 
the twenty-four, whether I had one meal or three or none, made no differ- 
ence. I could lie down and sleep in the rain without caring. But I was 
many years younger, and I could not hope to do that now. 

"The only eyes a general can trust are his own. 

" Although a soldier by education and profession, I have never felt any sort 
of fondness for war, and I have never advocated it except as a means of peace." 
— Speech in Londo7i^ ^^11- 

" A general who will never take a chance in a battle will never fight one. 

" T do not believe in luck in war any more than in luck in business. 

" I would deal with nations as equitable law requires individuals to treat with 
each other. ,1 j j * 

" The president of the Chamber of Commerce in his remarks has alluded to 



630 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



the Dersonal friendship existing between the two nations. I will not say the 
two peoples, because we are one people, but we are two nations haying a 
common destiny, and that destiny will be brilliant in proportion to the hi^nd- 
ship and co-operation of the brethren on the two sides of the water. —Speech 
at Newcastle. 

"The truth is I am more of a farmer than a soldier. I take little or no interest 
in military affairs, and, although I entered the army thirty-five years ago, and 
have been in two wars, in Mexico as a young lieutenant, and later. 1 never 
went into the army without regret and never retired without pleasure. 

" There had to be an end of slavery. Then we were hghting an enemy with 
whom we could not make a peace. We had to destroy him. No convention, 
no treatv, was possible, only destruction. _ w ui ^ 

" Too' iono- denial of guaranteed right is sure to lead to revolution, bloody 
revolution, where suffering must fall upon the innocent as well as the guilty. 
—Letter to Governor Chamberlain, 1876. 

" I am not one of those who cry out against the Republic and charge it with 
beine uncrrateful. I am sure that, as regards the American people as a nation 
and as individuals, I have every reason under the sun, if any person really 
has, to be satisfied with their treatment of me. —Speech in New York, 1880. 

"I have witnessed since my sickness just what I have wished to see ever 
since the war-harmony and good feeling between the sections. I have 
always contended that if there had been nobody left but the soldiers we should 

have had peace in a year. and are the only two that I know of who 

do not seem to be satisfied on the Southern side. We have some on ours who 
failed to accompUsh as much as they wished, or who did not get warmed up to 
the ficrht until it was all over, who have not had quite full satisfaction. Ihe 
ereat majority, too, of those who did not go into the war have long since grown 
tired of the long controversy. We may now well look forward to a perpetual 
peace at home and a national strength that will screen us against any foreign 
complication. I believe myself that the war was worth all it cost us. fearful 
as that vfdis:'— Written to Ge^ieral Buckner. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

THE NATION MOURNS THE DEATH OF GENERAL GRANT. 

Great Sorrow in all Parts of the Globe — Proclamations of President Cleveland and the 
Governors of the States — General Fitz-John Porter's Kind Words— Outward Signs of 
Woe — Flags at Half-Mast and Black Emblems in the Streets— Citizens, Soldiers 
an I Officials pay Universal Tribute — The Southern Press. 

Shortly after 8 o'clock on the morning of the 23d day of July the 
President was informed of the death of General Grant. He imme- 
diately directed that the flag on the White House should be placed 
at half-mast. The lowering of the flag was the first intimation that 
the citizens of Washington had of the death of the distinguished 
man, although they had been anticipating it throughout the night. 
A few minutes after the White House flag was placed at half-mast, 
the flags on all the public buildings and many private ones were 
placed in a like position. The bells of the city were tolled, and 
citizens who heard them readily recognized their meaning. Business 
men immediately began draping their houses with mourning, and 
residences in a similar manner showed esteem for the deceased. 

President Cleveland sent the following dispatch to Mrs. Grant, at 
Mt. McGregor: 

" Accept this expression of my heartfelt sympathy in this hour of your great 
affliction. The people of the Nation mourn with you, and would reach, if they 
could, with kindly comfort, the depths of the sorrow which is yours alone, and 
which only the pity of God can heal." 

Upon the receipt of the news of the death of General Grant, the 
following telegram was sent to Colonel Fred. Grant by General S. 
S. Burdett, Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Re- 
public : 

" Expressing the profound grief of the Grand Army of the Republic upon the 
death of the greatest of our comrades, on behalf of its 300,000 members, I tender 
to your honored mother, and to all the afflicted family, their heartfelt sympathy. 
I pray you have me advised so soon as arrangements for the last sad rites are 
determined upon." 

The Chairman of the Citizens' Meeting to-night was requested to 
convey to Mrs. Grant the expression of sympathy felt by the 
citizens of Columbus, Ohio. The following was telegraphed by Ex- 
Senator Thurman : 

" The City Council of the City of Columbus, Ohio, and the posts of the Grand 
Army of the Republic, in this city assembled in public meeting, direct me to 
convey to you and your family an expression of their profound sympathy in 
your bereavement and their deep sense of the loss sustained by the country in 
the death of General Grant. " A. G. Thurman, Chairman." 

(631) 



632 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

The following dispatch was received from Ex-President Hayes : 
" Fremont, Ohio, July 23. — Please assure Mrs. Grant and the sorrowing family 
that they have the deepest sympathy of Mrs. Hayes and myself 

" R. B. Hayes." 

The following are among the telegrams received by the family : 

" Augusta, Me., July 23. — Mrs. TJ. S. Grant : Please accept my profoundest 
sympathy in your great bereavement. The entire Nation mourns the loss of 
Its first soldier and its first citizen. "James G. Blaine." 

" Philadelphia, Pa., July 23. — Mrs. General Grant : I have heard with great 
sorrow of General Grant's death. I offer full measure of sympathy. 

"Samuel J. Randall, Berwyn, Pa." 

" Fort Reno, I. T. July 23. — Colonel F. D. Grant : Will you please express 
to Mrs. Grant my grief at the loss of my dearest friend and comrade, and my 
sincere sympathy and condolence with her in this hour of her great distress. 

" P. H. Sheridan, Lieutenant-General." 

" Washington, July 23. — To Colonel F. D. Grant. The painful news to me of 
your father's death has just been received. The sympathy of myself and 
family goes out from the depth of our hearts to your mother and all of you in 
your great bereavement. The country is filled with sympathy and grief at this 
news, but the greatness of its loss must grow upon it as the future unfolds the 
coming years. "John A. Logan." 

The following proclamation was issued by President Cleveland 
after a special Cabinet meeting : 

" The President of the United States has just received the sad tidings of the 
death of that illustrious cidzen and ex-President of the United States, General 
Ulysses S. Grant, at Mt. McGregor, in the State of New York, to which 
place he had lately been removed in the endeavor to prolong his life. 

" In making this announcement to the people of the United States, the Presi- 
dent is impressed with the magnitude of the public loss of a great military 
leader, who was, in the hour of victory, magnanimous ; amid disaster serene 
and self-sustained; who, in every station, whether as a soldier or as a Chief 
Magistrate, twice called to power by his fellow-countrymen, trod unswervingly 
the pathway of duty, undeterred by doubts, single-minded and straightforward. 

" The entire country has witnessed with deep emotion his prolonged and 
patient struggle with painful disease, and has watched by his couch of suffering 
with tearful sympathy. 

" The destined end has come at last, and his spirit has returned to the Creator 
who sent it forth. The great heart of the nation, that followed him when liv- 
ing with love and pride, bows now in sorrow above him dead, tenderly mindful 
of his virtues, his great patriotic services and of the loss occasioned by his death, 

" In testimony of respect to the memory of General Grant, it is ordered that 
the Executive Mansion and the several departments at Washington be draped 
in mourning for a period of thirty days, and that all public business shall on 
the day of the funeral be suspended ; and the Secretaries of War and the Navy 
shall cause orders to be issued for appropriate military and naval honors to be 
rendered on that day. 

" In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the 
United States to be affixed. 

" Done at the City of Washington, this twenty-third day of July, A. D. one 
thousand eight hundred and eighty-five, and the independence of the United 
States the one hundred and tenth. " Grover Cleveland. 

" By the President. 

" T. F. Bayard, Secretary of State." 



NATIONAL MOURNING FOR GENERAL GRANT. 6^;^ 

Adjutant General Drum, by command of Lieutenant-General 
Sheridan, issued the following order : 

" In compliance with the instructions of the P-esident, on the day of the 
funeral at each military post the troops and cadets will be paraded, and the 
order read to them, after which all labors for the day will cease. 

" The National flag will be displayed at half-staff. 

"At dawn of day thirteen guns will be fired, and afterward, at intervals of 
thirty minutes, between the rising and setting of the sun, a single gun, and at 
the close of the day a National salute of thirty-eight guns. The officers of the 
army will wear crape on the left arm and on their swords, and the colors of 
the iDattalion of engineers, of the several regiments, and of the United States. 
Corps of cadets will be put in mourning for the period of six months." 

Governor Hill, of New York, issued the following proclamation: 

" State of New York, Executive Chamber. 

" Ulysses S. Grant, twice President of the United States, the defender of the 
Union, the victorious leader of our soldiers, and General on the retired list of 
the army, is dead. 

"To the last he was the true soldier, strong in spirit, patient in suffering, brave 
in death. His warfare is ended. 

"After the close of his official life, and following that notable journey around 
the world, when tributes of esteem from all nations were paid him, he chose 
his home am.ong the citizens of our State. He died upon our soil, in the 
county of Saratoga, overlooking scenes made glorious by Revolutionary mem- 
ories. 

" It is fitting that the State which he chose as his home should especially 
honor his memory. 

" The words of grief and the tokens of sorrow by which we mark his death 
shall honor, too, the offices which he held, and proclaim that praise which shall 
ever be accorded to those who serve the Republic. Therefore it is hereby 
directed that flags on the public buildings of the State be placed at half-mast 
until his burial, and on that day, yet to be appointed, all ordinary business in 
the Executive Chamber and the departments of the State government will be 
suspended. 

" The people of the State are called upon to display until his funeral emblems 
of mourning, and it is requested that at that hour they cease from their busi- 
ness and pay respect to the distinguished dead. 

" Given under my hand and the privy seal of the State of New York, at the 
Capitol, in the city of Albany, the 23d day of July, 1885. 

" By the Governor, " David B. Hill." 

Governor Pattison, of Pennsylvania, issued the following pro- 
clamation : 

" In the name of and by the authority of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. 
Robert E. Pattison, Governor of the said Commonwealth: 

"Proclamation: The people of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania have 
learned with profound regret of the death of the illustrious American soldier 
and ex-President, Ulysses S. Grant. Emerging from the quiet walks of a citi- 
zen's life, at a critical period in the history of his country, he rapidly attained 
the highest renown in her military service, and on the return of peace was twice 
called to occupy her chief chair of state. Brilliant and successful in war, 
magnanimous and conservative in statesmanship, distinguished at home and 
abroad for his personal virtues in private life, he filled the measure of a useful, 
honorable and patriotic career, and he bequeathed to his fellow-citizens and 
posterity a name that will forever be revered. Now, therefore, in view of the 



634 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

sad event which has filled the nation with deep sorrow, and as a fitting mark 
of respect to the memory of the eminent man who, in the providence of God, 
after a painful and patient struggle with disease and death, has closed his mor- 
tal life, I do direct ihat the flags on the pubhc buildings of the State be held 
at half-mast until sundown on the day of his burial, and that on that day the 
ordinary business of the several departments of the State government be sus- 
pended. And I recommend to the people of the Commonwealth that, during 
the obsequies on that day, they do generally observe the great solemnity of 
those hours by suspension of business, the tolling of bells and such other 
marks of respect for the distinguished dead as to them may be deemed appro- 
priate. 

" Given under my hand and the seal of the State at Harrisburg, this twenty- 
fifth day of July, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and 
eighty-five and of the Commonwealth one hundred and tenth. 

" Robert E. Pattison, Governor." 

Governor Hoadly, of Ohio, issued a proclamation recommending- 
the proper observance of August 8th. Speaking of General Grant, 
he says : 

" By his labors and those of the brave men he led, the Union was restored, 
and six millions of freedmen celebrate the blessings of liberty secured for 
themselves and their posterity. Tenacious in conflict, he was magnanimous in 
victory, and the beneficent results of his generous dealings with his foes, and 
their grateful response, comforted him in the face of death." 

Governor Gray, of Indiana, was absent from Indianapolis at the 
time of General Grant's death. Immediately upon his arrival he 
issued a proclamation announcing the General's death and recom- 
mending a general suspension of business on the day of the funeral. 

General Fitz-John Porter took* occasion to speak about the death 
of General Grant : 

"We were boys together at West Point," he said, " and officers together in 
Mexico. Although in after-years he decided against me in a matter that con- 
cerns what is dearer to me than life, I never regarded General Grant as my 
enemy. On the contrary, I always esteemed him highly for his great purity 
of character. His conduct toward me shows that he was worthy of esteem. 
He was the victim, for awhile, of misinformation, but repented deeply for his 
hasty and incorrect judgment of my case. The very change proved his man- 
liness, his nobility and his absolute purity of heart. It also proved his sterling 
integrity and determination to do what was right and just. He had committed 
himself as President of the United States and as General of the Army, but 
when he examined into the facts, without hesitation he reversed his judgment 
and made every effort a man could to undo an unintentional injustice. I re- 
garded Grant as my friend and feel deeply his loss. I look upon his death as 
a calamity to the country, and his record as one for the study of the youths of 
the Republic.'' 

Washington, July 24, 1885. 

Mrs. U. S. Grant: — Her Majesty, the Queen, commands me to convey to 
yourself and family her sincere condolence on the death of General Grant. 

British Minister. 

The sympathy of Queen Victoria, the widow and mother, ten- 
dered to Mrs. Grant, also a widow and a mother, affected her even 
to tears. Next came the following missive from the Prince and 



NATIONAL MOURNING FOR GENERA^. GRANT. 635 

Princess of Wales, in whose hearts the flood-tide of humanity ever 
bounds with warm and generous impulses : 

London, July 24, 1885. 
Mrs. U. S. Grant: — Accept our deepest sympathy in the loss of your dis- 
tinguished husband. We shall always look back with gratification at having 
had the advantage of knowing him personally. 

Prince and Princess of Wales. 

This was quickly followed by the subjoined despatch from ex- 
President Arthur : 

Montreal, July 24, 1885. ^ 

Mrs. Grant : — I am greatly grieved to get the sad news of the General's 
death. Pray accept my most sincere sympathy. Chester A. Arthur. 

Among other telegrams received on the 25th day of July were 

the following : 

Atlanta, Ga., July 25, 1885. 
Colonel F. D. Grant : — I sympathize deeply with your family. General 
Grant was a brave and successful soldier and a generous adversary. 

G. T. Beauregard. 

Mrs. Grant ; — Delaware tenders the warmest sympathy of her citizens in this 
great hour of private and public grief. Charles C. Stockley. 

Mrs. Grant : — I offer my expression of deep sympathy to the widow of the 
great leader of the Union armies. Comte De Paris. 

Metherington, July 24,1885. 
Mrs. Grant: — Allow me to offer sincere sympathy on your great loss. 

Lord Ripon. 

London, July 25, 1885. 
Mrs. Grant: — Heartfelt sympathy for sad affliction befallen you. 

Mrs. Mackay- 

Tokio, Japan, July 24, 1885. 
Mme. General Grant : — I learned with much sorrow of the death of your 
husband. I tender you my sincere condolence and deep sympathy 

Prince Towhito. 

New York, July 25, 1885. 
Mrs. Grant: — In the name of the Imperial Government and my own, pray 
accept the expression of the deepest sympathy. Brazilian Minister. 

Tokio, July 25, 1885. 
Mrs. U. S. Grant : — By command, I present to you the condolence and sym- 
pathy of their Majesties the Emperor and Empress, in the sad death of the 
illustrious and honored friend of their Majesties. Ito Hirobume, 

Japanese Imperial Household Minister. 

Hot Springs, Ark., July 25, 1885. 
My own grief is overwhelming for the loss of my truest friend, beloved class- 
mate and noble con.rade. . RuFUS Ingalls. 

Executive Chamber, Augusta, Me , July 25, 1885, 
Our people extend to Mrs. Grant and family their profoundest sympathy. In 
accordance with the order of Executive Council of the State of Maine, I shall 
attend the funeral ceremonies, accompanied by a committee from that body. 

Frederick Robie, Governor. 



6^6 i-IFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

President Diaz, of Mexico, sent a telegram expressing his sor- 
row at the loss of so distinguished a soldier and statesman. 

Ignacio Mariscal, the Mexican Premier, sent the following : 

" By instructions of President Diaz I send you the most sincere condolence 
of the Mexican Government for the loss of our great friend, the illustrious 
General Grant, and personally I tender my own and my family's heartfelt 
sympathy in your bereavement.'' 

Mrs. Frelinghuysen, widow of the late Secretary of State, tele- 
graphed : 

" Pray receive my loving sympathy. We feel deeply for you all. I so highly 
appreciated the General's kindness to me in my sorrow, even when he was 
such a sufferer." 

Confederate soldiers of Helena, Ark., sent a message of sympathy. 

The following telegram was sent from Sandy Hook to Colonel 
Fred. D. Grant by Secretary Endicott : 

'^ Your telegram received containing the sad tidings of your father's death. 
The sympathies of the Nation and the world are with you, but nowhere will 
they be so near personal as in the army, which he commanded and the great 
department of the Government with v/hich he is so closely identified. Be 
assured of my sincere sympathy with you and your family in this great 
affliction." 

Governor Oglesby, of Illinois, was on the steamer " Colonel Patter- 
son," with the Grand Army of the Republic excursion from Quincy 
to Nauvoo, when he learned at Keokuk of the death of General 
Grant. The Governor made the soldier boys a brilliant speech, de- 
voted entirely to a tribute to the old commander. He left the ex- 
cursion and went to Springfield to inaugurate means for a fitting ^ 
tribute in behalf of Illinois for the dead hero. 

The news of General Grant's death spread with marvelous rapid- 
ity, in New York City, and ten minutes after the telegraph had an- 
nounced it to the newspaper offices it was known from the Battery 
to Harlem. Flags were soon flying at half-mast all over the city, 
and no one needed to be told the meaning of the gloomy signal. 
Gradually signs of mourning spread through the streets. Long 
streamers of black crape stretched from cornices to sidewalk. Busi- 
ness flagged. Though the current of trade did not cease, it was 
checked, and men found time to talk of the Nation's loss. Few 
men, as they mingled in the turmoil of city life, did not feel touched 
by a sense of personal sorrow. There were many silent tokens of 
the universal grief The half-masted flags and the mourning dra- 
pery, the edging of black, which grew as by magic on every street, 
the tolling of bells and the gathering here and there of official bodies 
to take appropriate action were only a few of these manifestations. 
Every face among thousands seemed to wear an expression of sorrow, 
and crowds gathered before the bulletins which contained the barren 
but moving statement that General Grant was dead. Likenesses of 



NATIONAL MOURNING FOR GENERAL GRANT. 637 

the dead hero in windows invariably gathered knots of people, and 
the features were studied with a new and regretful interest. Even 
some of the street-car lines decorated their platforms with sable- 
bordered flags. At Coney Island the various bands performed special 
programmes, and even in the scores of lesser halls in this city, where 
people flock for music, the airs were subdued. The gayest excur- 
sion boats on the bay and river carried their flags at half-mast, and 
it is a fact that the merriment upon them was subdued. The first 
building in the city to show signs of mourning was the Western 
Union, The National, State and municipal flags soon after drooped 
above the City Hall, and thence the line of mourning emblems ran 
quickly up Broadway. By noon emblems of mourning were dis- 
piaved on thousands of small stores. The Times, Tribune, World 
and Sun buildings were draped with especial effectiveness. Por- 
traits of the General framed in black and badges of white crape 
with his features stamped upon them, and medals bearing his face 
with the date and hour of his death, found ready sale upon the 
streets. Every church in Trinity parish tolled its bells, and the sad 
chimes soon rang from Murray Hill to the outskirts of Brooklyn 
and Jersey City. Every fire-engine-house and police-station was 
draped with black, as were the departments of the municipal gov- 
ernment. Mayor Grace found it impossible to get a full meeting of 
the Aldermen, but, in anticipation of their action, he sent an 
official telegram of condolence to Mrs. Grant and offered a burial- 
place in any of the parks in the city. Such of the exchanges as 
had not already adopted resolutions did so, and this form of ex- 
pression spread to countless organizations, — commercial, civic, 
military and social throughout the country. 

The Neiv York Herald said : 

"The announcement nine months ago that General Grant had 
fallen, shot by an assassin's bullet, would have stirred the nation 
from core to circumference, and excitement utterly unprecedented 
— unknown to modern life — would have taken possession of the 
city and dominated the situation. During this greater part of a 
busy and active year the nation had sat by the bedside of the 
sufferer ; had watched him during the sleepless hours of the night, 
when pain and anguish made him sigh for the final outcome ; had 
followed with great interest the efforts of his doctors and the service 
of his friends ; had hobbled with him on his crutch to the window, 
that he might reciprocate the courteous recognition of his com- 
rades ; had labored with him over the pages of his memoirs, and 
had read with unaffected interest, the affectionate messages written 
on the historic pad to his family and his friends ; had attended him 
in that long and tedious trip to the mountain, where he sought a 
possible relief, and in the long weeks had sunk from hopefulness to 



638 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

hopelessness, and at last had attended him to the very verge and 
confine of life's fitful fever. Therefore the end was not only ex- 
pected, but was anticipated, so that its effect was largely dis- 
counted. 

" When Garfield was assassinated doubt and uncertainty came with 
the news ; and although horror and disgust and apprehension were 
apparent on every hand, there was no cessation of work, no factory 
closed its doors, no exchange adjourned for the day. Hope told a 
flattering tale, and for weeks, and for months, while the illustrious 
sufferer lay and dozed upon his couch of pain, attended by unfeigned 
sympathy and affectionate interest, everything went on in its accus- 
tomed channel as m the olden time. This might have been antici- 
pated m the present instance. There was no surprise of any sort 
for those who have been lookmg nearly a year for the tidings of 
General Grant's death. There was no startling sensation to be 
sprung upon an unprepared people by ambitious panderers, or by 
dealers in highly-spiced intelligence. Quietly, gravely, solemnly, 
decorously as one's own family circle might sit in an adjoining 
room waiting for the death-throe whose painful conclusion the doc- 
tor alone would care to see, has the nation waited for dissolution 
so certain, — as certain as fate itself. 

*' At last it came ! 

" It came not with the force and vigor of a thunderbolt, not with a 
quick flash of incisive lightning, not with the blast and fury of a 
tornado, but in the calm announcement that the Christian hero, the 
successful general, the two-term President, the world's guest, the 
nation's favorite son, had finally succumbed, and in the noiseless 
seclusion of his bed-chamber, surrounded by his wife and children, 
had with intelligence yielded up his spirit to its Maker in calm 
confidence that a past so pregnant with good, so fr-aught with 
blessing, was a harbinger indeed of a happy future, a second term 
beyond the skies, directed, fashioned and guided by the omnipotent 
hand of the Creator himself 

" The sad news of his demise spread like wild-fire, and before 
many hours had elapsed the whole nation mourned the death ot 
General Grant." 

The New Yo?^k Tribime said: "The foremost man of the Nation has closed 
a career second to no other in the history of the Repubhc. The victorious 
leader of the Nation in the greatest war of modern times, he was also a leader 
of the people in civil life. All men have faults, and he was not exempt. But 
a thankful people would c^ladly forget them and remember only the great deeds 
and the noble traits of character which remain for the admiration of mankind. He 
has gone where reticence will no longer be misunderstood. The faults of others 
which he shouldered through life fall from him at the grave. He lives in the 
memory of millions who owe to him their Nation's safety, a great soldier, a 
faithful public servant, a devoted defender of public faith, a sincere patriot, a 
noble man.'' 



NATIONAL MOURNING FOR GENERAL GRANT. 639 

The New York Times said : " The name of General Grant will be remem- 
bered by Americans as that of the saviour of their country in a crisis more ap- 
palling than any it has passed through since the United States became a na- 
tion. His fame as a soldier will survive as long as the history of our Nation is 
read. The last of the two greatest Americans of their generation is gone." 

The New York Sun said : " Thus another great and memorable figure in the 
later history of the Republic — the most memorable, perhaps, excepting Mr. 
Lincoln, among all those who performed their parts in the immortal contest for 
the preservation of the Union— passes away from among living men and takes 
his place on the records of history. What encouragement for patriotism, for 
fidelity, for weariless defense of the great interests'of mankind ! And above 
and beyond all, we see the Democratic Republic greater than all persons, sur- 
viving every danger, victorious over every foe, preserving the treasure of lib- 
erty and law, and maintaining alive and undimmed the hope and promise of 
humanity.'' 

The New York IVor/d said: " Let us speak of our great chieftain and think 
of him only as a soldier whose fame has not a spot to mar its brilliancy. If his 
civil career seems to invite criticism, let us bury it out of sight and honor him 
as the great captain of the age ; as the devoted leader who led the armies of the 
Union to triumph, striking the fetters from the slave, showing the magnanim- 
ity of the hero in the hour of victory as he showed the courage of the hero in 
the day of battle, and restoring to us the American Republic stronger, more 
honored and more glorious than it was when handed down to us by our Revo- 
lutionary sires." 

The news of the death of General Grant reached Galena, the old 
home of the dead hero, at 7.20 A. m.. July 23d, via the Western 
Union Telegraph at Dubuque. The first bell to make the general 
announcement to the public was that of the First Presbyterian 
Church, and was tolled by Dr. G. Newhall, whose patriotic wife 
climbed through the church window and was the first one to toll 
the bell announcing the death of President Garfield four years ago. 
The first flag at half-mast was run up by W. H. Blewett on the 
staff of the De Soto House, which General Grant made his head- 
quarters the last time he visited Galena, two years ago. Soon after 
the solemn tones of the first church bell fell upon the ears of our 
people, the sad refrain was caught up by other church and fire 
bells of the city, and fiags at half-mast and other emblems of 
mourning were displayed on public buildings, business houses and 
private residences. Scarcely a building in the city was without 
sombre drapery of some kind, in token of respect for the distin- 
guished dead. The feeling in Galena was one of unbounded sorrow 
over the calamity which had befallen the country. General Grant 
was greatly beloved in Galena, and this sentiment was not confined 
by any means to his personal friends, but extended to all classes of 
our people. The news of his death, therefore, although not en- 
tirely unexpected, was a great shock to the citizens of Galena, 
the former home of the old commander, and brought tears to 
hundreds of eyes and unalloyed sorrow to every heart. A public 
meeting of the citizens was held at the Council chamber in the even- 



640 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

ing, at which memorial addresses were deHvered by Mayor R. 
Barrett, General W. R. Rowley, Grant's military secretary during 
the Rebellion, Senator R. H. McClellan, Judge Wm. Spensley and 
others. Resolutions expressive of the sorrow experienced by the 
people of Galena, over the death of General Grant, and sympathy 
for the wife and family of the old commander, were unanimously 
adopted and were ordered to be properly engrossed. 

The people of the city of New Orleans and the entire State of 
Louisiana had great respect and regard for General Grant, and the 
news of his death was received with general regret. Flags were 
placed at half-mast, the City Hall was closed, and Governor 
McEnery issued a proclamation ordering the State-House at Baton 
Rouge draped in mourning. The public sentiment was voiced by 
the editorials in the different papers. 

The Tij7ies- Democrat S2\di: "As the mortal remains of Ulysses S. Grant lie 
in their casket, and solemn guns are booming the last salute for the dead 
commander, we of the South forget the stern general who hurled his terrible 
masses upon the ranks of our fathers and brethren; whose storms of shot and 
shell mowed down our friends like wheat before the gleaner; remembering 
only the manly soldier who, in the hour of triumph, displayed the knightly 
chivalry that robs defeat of its bitterest pang; vanquished by his arms, in his 
chivalric kindness we were doubly vanquished at Appomattox. Every soldier 
heart in this wide land will pray God this morning that the generous meas- 
ures he meted to his foe in time of victory may be remembered and meted 
again to Ulysses S. Grant in this his hour of defeat and judgment." 

The Evening States said: "General Grant is dead. Wherever the telegraph 
has carried this not unexpected announcement there is profound regret. 
Twenty years have passed since the best of his reputation was earned. That 
has given time to make a juster estimate of the great soldier than was possible 
just after Appomattox. Much history has been written since then. All sides 
have been heard. Much documentary evidence has been sifted, and Grant's 
unquestioned successes are now generally conceded to have been greatly due 
to true military genius. Our people have had twenty years of time and abun- 
dant opportunity to closely study Grant's record, and the almost universal 
verdict is that, outside of politics, he was fortunate enough to achieve deserved 
greatness." 

The Picaytme said: "While the North remembers that General Grant 
received the sword of Lee, the South will not forget with what generous and 
soldierly courtesy he returned it. We cheerfully recognize his high place in 
history, and cannot think otherwise than regretfully of the misfortunes that 
saddened the last days of his life. The hero of a great war, twice elected 
President of the United States, the honored guest of kings and nations, the 
possessor of an ample fortune, the husband of a devoted wife, the father of 
loving and happy children — what had he to expect but peace and prosperity 
for his declining years? Alas! the answer has been written; we will not 
repeat it. Brethren of the North and South, let us join mournful hands 
together around that newly-opened grave, remembering that while all earthly 
goods are evanescent, honor, truth and love are eternally secure." 

The Evening Item says : " Than his, a more checkered career was never pur- 
sued by any human being. Its lights have flashed and its obscuring shacows 
have fallen as Rembrandt effects upon the great historic picture in which he 



NATIONAL MOURNING FOR GENERAL GRANT. 64 1 

formed the central figure ! And now he takes his place among the honored 
dead who yet speak— the teachers who instruct the coming generations by 
an example which cannot die." 

Ex- Congressman John S. Wise, of Virginia, speaking about 
General Grant's death, said : 

"I believe that our people in the South will mourn Grant's death more 
sincerely than any man of their own present or past. Grant completely won 
Virgmia by his course at Appomattox. He was plain, unassumino-, unostenta- 
tious, and used to go about after the surrender talking to the soldiers in blue 
and gray alike, wherever he met them. He was always approachable. On a 
sleeping-car, from Philadelphia, one night, several years ago, I sat beside 
General Grant, and fell into conversation with him, by mistake for the car 
conductor. He didn't mind it the least, though it confused me not a little 
when I discovered my mistake. Grant's entire course towards the South won 
him the admiration and, in a large degree, the affection of our people who 
will deeply regret his death." ' 

Ex-Senator Wm. Pitt Kellogg, of Louisiana, at the Fifth Avenue 
Hotel, said of General Grant : 

" His highest quality was that of being just. He was, it is true, often sur- 
rounded by men whose representations and opinions swaved his judo-ment 
owing to his confiding and trusting nature ; but when he came to knowlill the 
circumstances of a case, to investigate and penetrate it in all its bearino-s he 
invariably formed a just judgment, from which he could not be moved ' It 
was one of Grant's high qualities that he would stand by a friend and bt ind 
by what he believed to be right to the end." 

Ex-Governor S. B. Packard, of Louisiana, late Consul at Liver- 
pool, said : 

"I was well acquainted with General Grant and had unbounded admiration 
for him. He was a loyal-souled friend. I held the position of Marshal of 
Louisiana for seven years under him. It was due to his counsel as much as 
any man s that I consented to run for Governor of Louisiana acceptincr a 
nomination about the same time that Hayes was nominated for the Pr?si- 
dency. I never saw General Grant afterwards. He hesitated to reco^^nize 
me at the outset, from perfectly honorable and high-minded motives He was 
much aggrieved because the Republican party did not approve his" Southern 
policy and so enable him to carry it into efi^ect. But he recognized that this 
lack of support would make it a dangerous experiment to the peace of the 
country for him to assert his policy by force, which might have been necessary. 
General Grant will stand in history as one of the very few ^reat men of the 
century." -^ t> 

The announcement of General Grant's death was received in 
Canton, Miss., with sincere sorrow. All conceded that a great man 
had passed away. His memory will be revered in the South be- 
cause he quit fighting them when the war was over. 

The Georgia Legislature passed resolutions of regret at the 
death of General Grant, and adjourned for the day out of respect 
to his memory. 

Mayor Garland, of Springfield, 111., sent the following dispatch 
July 23d, after a conference with the citizens : 

To Mrs. U. S. Grant, Mt. McGregor, N. Y.-In behalf of the citizens of 
41 



642 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Springfield, the capital of the State of Ilinois, I tender to you a resting place 
for General Grant in this city, where your illustrious husband began his career 
as a soldier in the late war. James M. Garland, Mayor. 

As Governor Oglesby was absent from the city, this was thought 
to be the best thing to do. 

The following are among the thousands of telegrams received 
from all parts of the world by members of the Grant family : 

Washington, July 23. 

To Colonel Fred Grant. — The Board of Commissioners of the United States 
Soldiers' Home are unanimous in their desire that the remains of General 
Grant may be buried within the grounds of that institution. The commis- 
sioners have selected, subject to the approval of the family, an appropriate 
and commanding eminence overlooking the city and surrounding country as 
an appropriate place of sepulchre. Letter by mail. E. MacFeely. 

In the absence and by authority of Lieutenant-General Sheridan, President 
of the Board. 

Mayor Grace, of New York City, by direction of the Aldermen, 
sent the following dispatch : 

Mrs. U. S. Grant, Mt. McGregor, N. Y. — In advance of official action, I am 
instructed to tender to yourself and family the deep sympathy of the Common 
Council and of the municipal authorities of the City of New York in your 
bereavement. I am also authorized, by informal action of the authorities, 
which will be made official to-morrow, to tender to you a last resting-place for 
the remains of General Grant in any one of the parks in this city which you 
may select. I am also authorized to offer the government room at the City 
Hall for the purpose of allowing the body to lie in state. Mayor Grace. 

The first intimation that citizens of Brooklyn received of the sad 
event was about a quarter past eight o'clock, when the bells on the 
churches and city hall began to toll mournful and measured 
cadence. " Grant is dead," passed from lip to lip on the streets, on 
the avenues, on the boats, on the cars, everywhere, in fact, where 
there were lips to repeat the mournful intelligence. 

Simultaneously with the tolling of the bells the flags on all the 
public buildings were hoisted to half-mast, and within an hour 
afterwards there was not a flagstaff in the city that had not its flag 
floating from it. The spontaneity with which this was done was 
only equalled by the zeal of the people in displaying mourning on 
their residences. Indeed, the day had not half gone before all the 
public and a vast number of the private buildings were draped in 
mourning, In the evening the draping had so far progressed that 
the sable emblems of mourning met the eye at every turn and in- 
stinctively carried all beholders back to the day when all the 
houses were draped as a tribute to the memory of President Gar- 
field. 

R. E Lee Camp of Confederate Veterans, at Richmond, Va., 
unanimously adopted the following resolutions : 

Resolved, That R. E. Lee Camp of Confederate Veterans, with profound sor- 



NATIONAL MOURNING FOR GLi\ERAL GRANT. 643 

row and sincere regret, receive the announcement of the death of Ulysses S- 
Grant ; 

Resolved, That the people of Virginia will ever cherish and revere the 
memory of Ulysses S. Grant as an American soldier and citizen ; 

Resolved, That the people of the South, and especially the people of Virginia, 
will always hold in grateful memory his uniform and unvarying kindness of 
purpose towards this people, and the constancy with which he maintained the 
inviolability of the parole which he had granted to General Robert E. Lee and 
his soldiers at the termination of the late civil strife. 

Stonewall Jackson Camp of Confederate Veterans also adopted 
resolutions, as follows : 

Resolved, That, as a body of Confederate Veterans, we mourn with the na- 
tion the loss of one of the greatest military leaders of this generation, which 
has been sustained by the death of General U. S. Grant ; 

Resolved, That we felt the blows he so well directed during the war between 
the States, on the side of his honor and duty, and we appreciate the kmd terms 
granted by him when our flag was folded at Appomattox, thus learning that a 
great man, firm in war, could be gentle and generous in peace to his fallen friends. 

The meeting of ex-Confederate and Federal soldiers of Galveston* 
Texas, on the 24th of July, was largely attended, the gray outnum- 
bering the blue. Colonel Robert G. Street, of the Fifty-first 
Alabama Regiment, was active in calling the meeting. Judge Gus- 
tave Cooke, late Colonel of Terry's Texas rangers, was chosen 
Chairman. Among other prominent ex-Confederates present were 
Adjutant-General Franklin, Major Lloyd, Captain R. L. Fulton, 
Mayor of Galveston, Colonel Shannon, and General John M. Clai- 
borne. After several eulogistic addresses, the following resolutions 
were unanimously adopted : 

Resolved, That the death of General Grant is cause for common sorrow to 
all who love this, our common country ; to all who honor the great soldier, 
most just and magnanimous in the hour of his greatest victory; to all who 
admire the simple and homely virtues that give strength and nobility to man- 
hood. That his misfortunes and long and painful illness, while awakening the 
most widespread sympathy, have given the world the noble spectacle of the 
quiet heroism that resides in the breast of a brave man, conscious of the recti- 
tude of his own purposes in life, shining the more brightly amid the mingled 
gloom of pecuniary disaster and the sensible approach of the victor, death. 
To the praise of those who honor him, we add our tribute to the soldier and 
man , to those who personally knew and loved him we tender our most 
respectful sympathy. 

San Francisco, Cal., July 23. 

The tolling of fire-bells at six this morning announced to the inhabitants of 
San Francisco the death of General Grant. Meetings were held this afternoon 
by the Chamber of Commerce, Board of Trade, Grand Army of the Republic 
and other associations. All of them appointed committees to confer with the 
Mayor and Board of Supervisors how to most appropriately show their grati- 
tude for Grant's great services to the country and their respect for his memory. 
Governor Stoneman proclaimed the day of the funeral a legal holiday and re- 
commended that all business be suspended. 

Des Moines, Iowa, July 23. 

The news of the death of General Grant, although expected, cast a gloom 
upon the city, and was received with universal sorrow. Flags on ^he goverr*' 



644 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANTo 

ment, State, county and city buildings are at half-mast, and business houses 
are generally draped with the emblems of mourning. 

In a proclamation issued at noon, Governor Rusk, of Wisconsin, 
after eulogizing the life of General Grant, ordered : 

" That the flag upon the Capitol be displayed at half-staff each day until 
sundown the day of the funeral ; that the Quartermaster-General cause a gun 
to be fired every half-hour, beginning at sunrise and end at sunset on the 24th 
inst., and on the day of the funeral every half-hour, beginning at sunrise and 
ending when the burial procession moves ; that the State offices be closed on 
this day and on the day of the funeral, for all public business; that the Capitol 
be draped in mourning, and that the usual badge of mourning be worn by the 
Wisconsin National Guards." 

The following telegram was sent by Governor Rusk to Mrs. 
Grant : 

" In the hour of your great affliction, permit me, in behalf of the people of 
Wisconsin, who gratefully remember the invaluable services rendered the 
Nation by your distinguished husband, to assure you of their sincere and 
heartfelt sympathy." 

Choice of a burial-place : 

" In regard to the place of burial, it is stated that about the ist of July the 
General handed Colonel Fred Grant a slip of paper on which was written sub- 
stantially this : ' There are three places from which I wish a choice of burial- 
place to be made : West Point — I would prefer this above others but for the 
fact that my wife could not be placed beside me there. Galena, or some place 
in Illinois — because from that State I received my first general's commission. 
New York — because the people of that city befriended me in my need.' " 

Receipt of the news of General Grant's death in Chicago : 

" Up flagstaff after flagstaff the colors crept, to be kissed and gently shaken 
by the faint breezes of yesterday morn. Banner after banner floated o'er the city 
— but a drooping banner, o'er a drooping city. No flag was pulled to the peak ; 
at half-mast it sadly fluttered. On distant Mt, McGregor— a mount of 
anguish for one great soul no longer — Grant lay dead ! Chicago mourned, for 
in this latter day the greatest surviving son of her beloved commonwealth was 
taken from her, yet leaving the immeasurable heritage of a hero's name. 
Like the news of a disaster or the news of a victory, the ill-tidings swept from 
house to house. By the breakfast table they found many a citizen. They left 
him and his silent and thoughtful. It was an hour of review of a patriot's 
career. The stripling who watched the tear well into his father's eye when the 
news came home will never forget the hour, for he will never be convinced 
that the man for whom his sire was not ashamed to weep had not been a man 
full worthy of such tribute. The man that wept for Grant wept, too, for Lin- 
coln. In the sight of two generations of lads did those tears fall. Such tears * 
vitalize impressions, and are histories writ in granite for the young. 

" The city had been prepared for the unwelcome news by the significant 
despatches of Wednesday evening. Ic seemed at last as though the ordeal 
were over and the end come. Devotedly had tens, yea, hundreds of thousands, 
watched the record of his repining months, some wishing him recovery, some, 
perhaps with just as tender a love and humanity, wishing for his sake that re- 
lease and the final victory over torment and disease might come in death. 
But all were friends. In a government of the people and by the people the 
servant that fights and governs for the people will never know the ingratitude 
of his peers in life or suffer the oblivion of their forgetfulness after death.. 



NATIONAL MOURNING FOR GENERAL GRANT. 645 

Yesterday Chicago received the nev/s of General Grant's demise, and at once 
prepared to do that noble memory honor. Upon the day of his burial Chicago, 
fitly clad, will march with reverent step and mourning mien in the solemn 
funeral train of the Nation's weeping sisterhood of cities. 

" With the stars and stripes at half-mast Chicago turned to other proper 
modes of exhibiting her understanding of the day and her common sorrow in 
the country's loss. From window to window, here and there along a business 
front, interwoven streamers of black and white were extended. This work is 
but begun ; the city will be draped before the dawn of the conqueror's burial- 
day. With artful hand, but with all suitable decorum, more than one great 
shop-window will be found this morning transformed — a fit, though sombre 
transformation that every house-holder in his degree will do well to accom- 
plish. 

" The people mourn to-day — the people, all the people. The merchant may 
be of but moderate means who keeps a store on West Van Buren, Madison, 
and Randolph Streets, for instance, but he is not too poor, nor is his citizenship 
so humble, that he does not associate the dead Grant with the living Union, 
and place in token thereof some bit of mourning about his window and his 
door. A piece of crape here, a streamer of black muslin there ; a flag with 
colors tempered by the black drapings o'er its folds, and betore many hours 
Chicago is a city of sorrow in aspect as truly she is a city of sorrow in heart. 
There can be little ostentation in the symbolism of grief; therefore let no man, 
however penniless and obscure, suppress all exhibition of his honest mourning 
because his flag is not silken and his crape but seedy. Ulysses S. Grant was 
a plain man and his origin humble. He fought for the humble as well as the 
great : 

' What cause withholds you now to mourn for him ?' 

" Official and municipal recognition, more or less, of the death of General 
Grant, was made yesterday, and will doubtless be continued by organization 
after organization until the merest youth, the proudest citizen, and the loneliest 
veteran will, with quaver of voice, say ' aye * when the voices of his fellows 
are raised to indorse one universal tribute to the patriot, soldier and statesman 
of the people. The trains that bear their daily burdens to and from the city 
will wear their mourning, as will many a vessel of the lakes. Along the 
princely avenues and in alleys where the story of his life is but slowly gleaned 
from the daily press, men, women, and children will talk of Grant and forth- 
with teach him, too. Across many a page of various lore there will come faint 
tracings of the 'turned rule,' and the reader's eye, accustomed to the mourn- 
ing newspaper sheet, will seem to see those lines of black around pages where 
the name of Grant will ne'er be found. But men, nevertheless, will put him 
there ; and, as they read of stout hearts and sound heads ; of brains to devise 
and will to execute ; of soldiers magnanimous in peace, but in onslaught resist- 
less, they will see the name of another hero glow upon the page — that other 
hero, greater than all his kind, the Nation's hero, Grant." 

Action of the City Councils of Chicago in reference to the 
death of General Grant : 

" The City Council held a special meeting yesterday afternoon to take action 
on the death of General Grant. Mayor Harrison presided. After the call for 
the meeting had been read, the Mayor said that for several hours the atmos- 
phere had been heavy and the clouds lowering. We had known for hours thai 
thunder might at any moment be heard and the lightning flash. Yet if a flash 
came we would be startled as if it were entirely unexpected. P^cr weeks 
America's hero had been on a bed of sickness, and yet we are startled by the 
lightning which flashed forth the news of his end. When the bells tolled in 



646 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

• 
the morning there was a feeling of pain, of awe — aye, a shock that came to 
all, every man, woman and child in the nation. 

" The Mayor therefore felt it his duty to take such action as might be proper. 
General Grant occupied a position unique in this country. His was a figure 
standing out boldly as none other stood during this century, and as no other 
would stand out for centuries to come. Called from the lowly walks of life, 
he went out to battle for his country, and it was under his leadership that the 
war of the rebellion happily terminated for the Union. Called to the Presi- 
dency, he served his country there eight years. When he laid down his official 
robes he was welcomed in every land in the broad circle of the globe, and 
treated with honors vouchsafed only to emperors. And now, when he has 
been called from life, he is honored more as the representative of that sentiment 
given at Appomattox, that the American people are one in heart and sympathy, 
than as the successful General and ex-President, During the months of pain all 
mankind had stood at his bedside, and the world's sympathy had been with him. 

" There was no man or w^oman who had not forgotten in these hours all the 
asperities of politics. Whether Southerner who fought for a lost cause or 
Northerner who fought to preserve the Union, all mourn with the same depth 
of grief his demise. His example in the last few months had done more than 
all else to bury in one eternal doom the strife and bitterness of the past. It 
was right that the city should take action. The nation mourned, and the nation 
would be anxious to tread in silence at his funeral. 

" The Mayor then suggested that some ceremony be adopted, to be held the 
day of the funeral, such as was witnessed when President Garfield was laid to rest. 

"Alderman Ryan otfered the following resolution: 

" Whereas, This Council has heard with profound and solemn regret of the 
death of U. S. Grant, late commander of the American armies and President 
of these United States, therefore, 

" Resolved, That, as the death of General Grant is a calamity affecting the 
entire nation, and is so regarded by the people of Chicago, the Mayor is hereby 
authorized to take such steps in behalf of the city on this occasion as may 
seem fitting and appropriate. 

"Alderman Shorey followed, feeling sure that the Council would respond as 
one man to the sentiments of the Mayor. For a quarter of a century General 
Grant, by his grand achievements, had attracted the attention and regard of 
the world. He was an honor to his country and to the human race. He had 
added one more name to the select few who were inscribed upon the nation's 
roll of immortals. America had, indeed, acted her part well during the last 
one hundred years, but he thought that it would be the unanimous voice that 
among our distinguished men there was none, and would be none in the future, 
whose name would be held in greater reverence than the hero whose demise 
we were now called upon to mourn. Illinois had reason to be proud as well as 
sad. When impartial history was written the name of Grant would be asso- 
ciated with the immortal name of Lincoln. These two names added lustre of 
which any State or nation might well be proud. During the most mature years 
of his life General Grant lived amid the fiercest contention, civic as well as 
military. As the Mayor had said, now that death has come, there were none 
who cared to renew the asperities which attended those contentions. There 
was not one who would not gladly, though sadly, bring laurel to put on the 
grave of the dead hero. 

Mayor Harrison sent the following telegram of sympathy to 
Mrs. Grant : Chicago, July 23. 

Mrs. Grant, Mt. McGregor, N. Y. — Madam : In the name of the city of 
Chicago and on behalf of its municipal government and people, I tender to- 
you and to your children profound and most heartfelt sympathy. 



NATIONAL MOURNING FOR GENERAL GRANT. 647 

Yesterday General Grant, the honored citizen of lUinois, was your loving 
husband and long-tried friend ; to-day his name and memory are cherished 
by the American people. Carter H. Harrison, Mayor. 

The news of Grant's death was received with sorrow at the 
Board of Trade of Chicago. President Blake called the members 
of the Board to order on the floor, and said : 

"Gentlemen of the Board: I address you as men, business men, practical 
men, strong men, and vet as men who feel that there are times when grief is 
not unmanTy, when it is not unmanly to sorrow. ' Leaves have their time to 
fall and flowers to wither at the north wind's wrath, and stars to set, but thou 
hast all seasons for thine own, O Death.' 

" Death must come to all alike ; rank or station or position cannot avert it; 
love cannot protect it; wealth cannot purchase immunity; it is God's ten- 
derest way to speak to those left behind. He speaks to individuals and to 
families, to communities and to States, to nations and to the world. He comes 
in the person of his messenger, and He calls to a world to-day, ' Be still and 
know that I am God.' Sympathy for that silent sufferer has gone up to him in 
his chamber of agony, and now that he has passed away we can only bring our 
united offerings of tribute to his greatness, to his memory." 

Mr. Blake then offered the following resolutions : 

Whereas, God, in His all-wise though inscrutable providence, has removed 
by death our rightly honored and worthily distinguished soldier-citizen. General 
and ex-President U. S. Grant, the Board of Trade of Chicago does hereby 

Resolve, That it is with the deepest regret and keenest sorrow we learn of 
this Nation's bereavement and loss in the death of him who has filled so large 
a place in our history. . . 

Resolved, That with pride we remember the nation s recognition of his worth 
in calling him from the humblest walks of life, up to elevation after elevation, 
till it placed him in the proudest position on earth, which he filled, as he did 
every other, with modest ability, and we recall with great pleasure the glowing 
tribute paid to his greatness and glory by the kingdoms of the entire world, as 
they honored themselves in honoring him as their guest. 

Resolved, That in the death of General Grant there has passed away a noble, 
unflinching soldier, who achieved a glorious record for himself, while he 
rendered invaluable service to his country in time of her great peril, and with 
the rest of the stricken Nation and mourning world we join in offering our 
tribute to his memory, and we extend to his afflicted family our tenderest sym- 
pathy in this their time of grief and sorrow. 

On hearing the university bell at Evanston 111., toll for the death 
of General Grant, Miss Frances E. Willard, President of the 
Woman's Christian Temperance Union of the United States, com- 
posed the following poem, entitled, " Grant is Dead :" 

Toll bells from every steeple, 
Tell the sorrow of the people, 
Moan sullen guns and sigh 
For the greatest who could die. 

Grant is dead. 

Never so firm were set those moveless lips as now, 

Never so dauntless shone that massive brow. 

The " Silent Man" has passed into the silent tomb. 



648 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Ring out our grief, sweet bell, 

The people's sorrow tell 

For the greatest who could die. 

Grant is dead, 
" Let us have peace," 
Great heart that peace has come to thee. 
Thy sword for freedom wrought, 
And now thy sword is free. 
While a rescued Nation stands 
Mourning its fallen Chief. 
The Southern with the Northern lands 
Akin in honest grief, 
The hands of black and white 
Shall clasp above thy grave. 
Children of the Republic all. 
No master and no slave. 
Almost " all summer on this line '' 
Thou steadily didst fight it out, 
But death, the silent, 
Matched at last our silent Chief, 
And put to rout his brave defense. 
Moan sullen guns and sigh 
For the bravest who could die. 

Grant is dead. 

The huge world holds to-day 
No fame so great, so wide. 
As his whose steady eyes grew dim 
On Mount McGregor's side 

Only an hour ago, and yet the whole great world has learne* 
That Grajit has died. 

Oh heart of Christ ! what joy 

Brings earth's new brotherhood I 

All lands as one, 

Buckner, Grant's bed beside, 

The priest and Protestant in converse kind ; 

Prayers from all hearts, and Grant 

Praying we " all might meet in better worlds," 

Toll bells from every steeple, 

Tell the sorrow of the people. 

So true in life, so calm and strong, 

Bravest of all, in death, suffering so long, 

And without one complaint ! 

Moan sullen guns and sigh 

For the greatest who could die. 

Salute the Nation's head, 

Our Grant is dead. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

TRIBUTES OF THE PRESS. 

The press of the country had warm words of grief and respect 
for General Grant. 

The Constitution, of Atlanta, Ga., said : 

" With the clearing of the eady mists, yesterday morning, which hovered over 
Mt. McGregor, passed away the soul of General Grant, the most distin- 
guished of living Americans— the general commanding the victorious armies of 
his country, and twice President of the Republic. Washington, alone of all 
men in our history, has equalled him in honors. General Grant was a great 
commander. The operations of war, in which he was the leading figure of the 
Union armies, were colossal. Its expenses to his government were over 
^4,000,000 per day. In the siege of Richmond he lost 70,000 men, and in a 
single charge saw 3,000 men struck down. 

" As a statesman he was honest, but without the larger wisdom of humanity or 
statecraft. Sincere, but credulous ; sphinx-like to the world, but easy to his 
courtiers ; stubborn where he should have listened anxiously, and facile where 
he should have been stubborn. In business he was weaker than in politics. 
In both it must be said that his personal record was clean, and that he came 
stainless, as to his own character, from contact with thieves and plotters. It is 
as a great soldier, brave, simple, generous and victorious, that he will be best 
remembered. It is as a soldier, even though his sword struck down her 
cause, that the South loves to remember him. As the conqueror of Lee, refus- 
ing to take the sword of that great leader, whose heart broke when he surren- 
dered his arms ; as the thoughtful victor feeding the starving enemies from his 
own wagons ; as the high-minded man of honor, demanding the integrity of his 
parole at the hands of a vindictive Secretary of War; as a dauntless man, stand- 
ing alone, but determined, between the helpless South and the angry North, 
he held, as he deserved, in all his trials, the deepest and fullest sympathy of 
our people. He died as he had lived— brave, silent, uncomplaining. He 
fought against death with manful strength, and when he was overpowered, 
bowed his head without a word. When his life went out, a great name passed 
into history, and a great heart was stilled forever.'' 

The Advertiser, of Montgomery, Alabama, expressed its sym- 
pathy in the following article : 

"A splendid sun has set, its light is out, and its dark places have followed 
its bright ones below the trees and hills. It went down lingeringly, as if in 
pain with parting from the scenes it lighted with more of majesty in its 
gathering gloom than its noon had ever known. Those on whose downfall the 
temple of his fame was builded will sow no thorns on his grave. 

"Whatever were his faults, his errors and his failures, but yesterday he stood 
in the eyes of all the world the foremost figure of the Western Continent. His 
career was finished long years before he died, and when, nine months ago, the 
wings of Death's angel blew a breath against his cheek to warn of his coming 
doom, he was already an old man, around whose darkened life had gathered 
the sympathy and pity of all men. Looking at the life and character of 
General Grant from the broadest national standpoint, it is true to say that no 
man since Washington has better illustrated the genius of American institu- 

(649) 



650 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



tionsor the temper of Americans as a people. The close of his military career 
was in a generous treatment of his fallen foe that sent a thrill of grateful recog- 
nition through the heart of the South, His conduct toward General Lee and 
the Southern army at Appomattox, and his firm stand in defense of their rights 
as prisoners, and his own honor as a soldier, will always be a model for the 
action of other victorious leaders, and is a green leaf that hides many a shadow 
on his subsequent career. But amid it all, no personal prostitution of his place 
for money has ever been traced to his door. He never shirked a responsi- 
bility, never deserted a friend ; was an honest soldier, and made no war on 
women." 

The Courier, of Charleston, S. C, said : 

" Happy he was, in one sense, in the^time of his death. Had his life ended 
but a few years ago, the mourning for the great leader would have been more 
or less sectional in its manifestation. Dying as he now dies, the grief is as 
widespread as the Union, and the sorrow is as national as his fame. Only 
a little while ago General Grant belonged to the victorious North. In his last 
days he was the foremost citizen of these United States, of North and South 
alike. 

" It was as General of the armies of the United States that General Grant was 
held in most joyous and honorable remembrance by the North. And by the 
act of North and South alike he died as General of the armies of the United 
States. By this act the whole distance between 1865 and 1885 was bridged 
over. The North had no thought save of the man of Appomattox, and the 
South had no thought save of him who told the worn and ragged Confederate 
soldiers of Lee's armies that they must take their horses home with them, as 
they would need them for the spring sowing, and who threw his soldierly 
honor into the scale when Andrew Johnson v/as hesitating whether he should, 
by arresting General R. E. Lee, violate the terms of the Confederate surrender 
and the sanctity of the parole. There is so much in General Grant's career 
that is pleasant to remember, why should any one seek further his frailties to 
disclose ? Long ago, in a message to the people of the United States, he used 
words which seemed a mockery. There was then a peace which was worse 
than war ; but peace has come throughout the land — peace in the North and 
peace in the South. The country is one again in heart and thought and hope. 
The great soldier, who laid in blood the foundations of this second and more 
enduring Union, is now at rest." 

The following editorials are from the Chicago Inter-Ocean: 

" The most remarkable career in American annals has ended. In the broad 
aspect of human affairs, in the measure of a public fame almost universal with 
the races of men, history affords no parallel to the life and experience of 
Ulysses S. Grant, and presents no more momentous lesson in the character ot 
true greatness. Through the profound sorrow of the nation, that will touch 
millions of hearts as a personal grief, through the reverent sympathies of sister 
nations thatwill to-day drape about them the outward signs of mourning, there 
will be seen the clear radiance of this long, varied and extraordinary career, 
tempering the affliction of mortal loss with the consolation of perpetual re- 
nown. It is only in the shadow of death that we can fairly estimate the mag- 
nitude and force of influence of such a life upon the world, for only then are 
deeds viewed independently of the man ; only then are the jealousies that 
make human nature envious of justice put aside; only then are the honors 
and triumphs which rivalry diminished freely acknowledged and fully ac- 
corded. 

" Character rises above personality when material environments are with- 



TRIBUTES OF THE PRESS. 65 1 

drawn, and in proportion as that personality was distinguished above the 
ordinary in hfe will character be allowed eminence in the sublime esteem of 
men. In this regard of General Grant, whose demise is hardly death the 
world sees a personal purity that mistakes could never affect, a moral excel- 
lence that never suffered blemish and a spiritual force that lifted him from the 
obscurity of stern poverty and narrow circumstance to the brilliant sphere of 
unshared admiration, a cynosure of the world. 

"The lesson of Grant's life is an inspiration, not a reproach. From the tan- 
yard to the Presidency it bears no blot that is not the smirch of partisan 
malice; from private toil to public state it shows no flaw that does not betray 
the talons of envious detraction. Grant was not only great by achievement 
but he was equally great within himself, since the world affords no better ex- 
ample of perfect self-mastery, a power to receive without assurance the highest 
honors of his country, and to accept without ostentation the homacre of the 
world. *= 

"At various times within the fateful quarter of a century rounded into an 
epoch by his death. Grant held within his grasp, subject to the operation of 
his single will, the destinies of this country, of which he was peculiarly rep- 
resentative. A lesser man would have made greater profit from the oppor- 
tunities. A man less strong within himself might have turned the victorious 
patriots into a legion of personal adherents ; for Grant came from the murky 
night of battle the peace-bearing demi-god of the Western world, and adula- 
tion swelled to adoration as he marched his armies home. 

'; Cromwell righted the wrongs of England to carve for himself a protectorate 
of imperial tyranny ; Grant was most the patriot when most in power The 
man was ever greater than the temptation, and there is no purer lustre in the 
immortal crown of brilliant deeds that will grace the image of his fame than 
the rare quality that sustained the balance of his character, reverence of uni- 
versal justice. 

"That Grant was misunderstood in much of his life is true, and that he 
suffered not a little through misconception is likelv. Conscious of the fact 
that his course was one of unfaltering integrity,' aware of the folly of 
trying to correct the speech of deliberate deprecation and malicious slander 
and believing firmly in the ultimate triumph of truth, he maintained a silence 
that was never broken through twenty-five perplexing years with an offer of 
self-defense or personal justification. The people have been his advocates. 
Ihe people have guarded with jealous zeal the sacred trust reposed in them 
And from the people he inspired to the last the sweet breath of a devotion that 
had in it all the tenderness of affection, all the fondness of love. 

"Throughout the land to-day tears flow from eyes that have looked hardily 
and fearlessly into the deadly flame of fire belched from batteries and ranks 
of hostile foes, with memories floating before them of who it was cheered on 
the victorious charge ; and these veterans of the Northern armies will feel 
more pain at heart m loss of the Old Commander than stirred them when shot 
and shell swept from their sides some close, near tie of blood. These surviv- 
ing soldiers will express what the entire Nation must feel— a profound ^n-ief— 
not merely for a great man gone, but for the death of one who embraced in 
his life the elements that make greatness dear to the common people o-reat- 
ness with humanity, greatness with humility, greatness with manhood. ' ° 

" It was a greatness of that quality which maintained the respect of those 
who suffered to give it distinctness. In the heart of the South, that knew the 
smart of his chastening, Grant has died no more than in the reverence of the 
North. His character lives in the esteem of the Nation— a character that 
sprung into strength and fullness from the obstructions of lowly life, bearing 
with It an ever-abiding sympathy with lowly condition. The man who was 
great enough to stand admired in the presence of kings and potentates, re- 



652 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

ceivino- the homage of nations that knew him alone in his glory, was also 
great enough to hold and cherish the love of the common people, from whom 
he came. Great as a soldier, great as a statesman, great in heart, great in 
mind and great in character. Grant lived a noble career possible alone with an 
American." . 

" The hand trembles that writes 'General Grant is dead. When Lmcoln 
fell the hearts of loyal men stood still, then turned in their extremity to 
the man of Appomattox. The North and South stand together at the 
grave of Grant and own a kindred sorrow for the man who, more than any 
other, represented the dignity, the force and the magnanimity of the Union 

cause. -1 v • t 

"It is because the career of Grant so well illustrates the possibilities of 
American life; it is because he entered upon that career without fortune or in- 
fluence, and with circumstances against him ; it is because he had neither im- 
pressive presence nor smooth tongue nor taking ways ; it is because he fought 
liis way in silence to be the foremost man of the age that Americans have 
grown, independent of prejudices and opinions, to have a commonalty of in- 
terest in him. 

" The traditions of Appomatox quicken the heart-beats of Unionists and 
Confederates. To speak of Grant in the last twenty years has been to speak 
of the greatest military success of the century crowned by a soldierly magna- 
nimity "that wrung admiration from the fiercest of foes. 

"This was the turning of the tide, the mingling of the waves of popular 
sentiment, that have come in at the flood in the weeks of anxiety which now 
give place to a common sorrow. 

"There was never any make-believe about Grant. There is no make- 
believe about the sorrow felt by 60,000,000 of people. He has been constantly 
before the people for twenty-five years. Children have grown up with his 
name on their lips, his character in mind. Men have grown gray in a kindly 
watch over the incidents of his every-day life. The Nation has grown strong 
of heart and more considerate while holding him at arm's length always in 
view. 

" In this twenty-five years of conspicuous prominence General Grant was 
studied as never was man before him. Enemies and admirers, beginning at 
opposite extremes of motive, came out in steady line at a common point of 
agreement. He was a new type. He was the man of the people, who 
answered ' here ' and no more when the people called for something or some 
one willing and ready to close with the exigencies of great crises. He volun- 
teered without protestations, accomplished without bluster and contemplated 
results without boasting. 

" These exceptional qualities invited study. The study invited analysis and 
comparison, and now the people of his own country, of the civilized world, are 
ready with their verdict. The standard may have been fixed when the loyal 
people of the country were in the red glow of a supreme enthusiasm, but the 
Southerners of this day will not alter a figure. Grant lived to the last fully up 
to the line where he was placed by a people that idolized him. And the 
tender, simple and profound sorrow of this hour is that of a Nation that has 
learned the full value of his work, and has arrived at a just appreciation of the 
character of the man, the soldier, the statesman, U. S. Grant." 

" One of the most remarkable characteristics of General Grant was his utter 
abhorrence of cruelty and of war for its own sake, or for the mere gratification 
of ambition. 

" The historical figures whom he most detested were Robespierre and Na- 
poleon. It was not that he had studied the French revolution with any degree 
of closeness, and saw in the horrors of the reign of terror and the wars of the 
first empire the perversion and finally the subversion of what was originally 



I 



TRIBUTES OF THE PRE^S> 655 

the grandest uprising in history ; but his whole soul recoiled at the guillotine 
and at the miseries of wholesale carnage. The city of Paris ran blood, and 
for what? to appease the thirst of a monster; the continent was wrapped in the 
flames of war, and for what ? to gratify one man"s lust of power and fame. 
Such was the view General Grant took of those two men and their careers, and 
he did not hesitate while in Paris, on his tour of the world, to testify to his de- 
testation of them. He sought no public opportunity for so doing, only refusing 
to visit the tomb of Napoleon, and in other quiet but significant ways register- 
ing his opinions. 

" This appreciation of the sacredness of human life was all the more re- 
markable from the fact that when it came to military operations General 
Grant never showed the slightest hesitancy on that score. Whatever the 
situation seemed to him to demand he did without being checked by the 
probable loss of life involved. In practical operations he accepted the logic 
of war in all its sequences. As in mechanics all forces, whether human, brute 
or inanimate, are merely so many horse-power, so in actual war General 
Grant seemed to class indistinguishably men and armament as so much am- 
munition. 

" When history comes to pass upon the nineteenth century, all contemporary 
prejudices cold and forgotten, it will undoubtedly credit it with two great 
soldiers, warriors worthy of immortality for their military genius. Napoleon 
and Grant. England might insist upon a place for Wellington, but he is not 
to be named with either of the other two. He did, indeed, conquer the con- 
queror, but that was only because the Napoleonic wars had depleted France 
and united against it all Europe, and thus the Corsican's candle burnt at both 
ends, and the Grand Duke chanced to hold the snuffers just in time to snip 
the wick as the flame was in its last flicker. Napoleon's fame as a warrior was 
without modern companionship until the exigencies of our war for the Union 
developed the latent faculties of the soldier who has so recently gone to his 
rest. 

" But these supreme names stand more in contrast than in comparison. 
They are, indeed, on the same pedestal, but they face in opposite directions, 
marking ideas of war which are in the sharpest conceivable contrast. 

"Napoleon belongs to the same era as Alexander, Hannibal, Csesar, Omar, 
Charlemagne, William the Conqueror and all that class of military leaders 
who differed from bandit chiefs in the magnitude rather than the character of 
their operations. A native of an island which never felt the breath of pro- 
gress, the home of the vendetta, Napoleon belonged to the old regime, when 
war for its own sake and for conquest was waged as a matter of course by the 
strong against the weak. To all that immemorial era of unjustifiable carnage 
he could at least say, ' part of which I am.'' It is certainly to be hoped that 
his fame marks the end of that age. 

" After the lapse of half a century, during which no really important war 
was waged, nor any genius displayed, the mighty conflict opened in this 
country which had as its underlying issue continental and perpetual peace. If 
the Union had been broken up, America, like Europe, would have been divided 
into nations jealous of each other and often at war with each other. The sup- 
pression of the rebellion was the most important peace measure conceivable. 
It was the maintenance of civil institutions as a substitute for standing armies 
and the arbitrament of gunpowder. General Grant was promoted to the 
leadership solely for his military genius, but it was according to the especial 
fitness of things that the hero of a war which meant above all else peace 
should have been in his character and tastes pre-eminently pacific. He knew 
the science of war, but it was with the object in view, rather than the means 
necessarily employed, that he was en rapport, and in this, it may be added, he 
was specially fitted to learn the Union army, made up as it was of soldiers 



654 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

who fought for principle and not from any love of fighting. Whatever re- 
lapses into the barbarism of old-fashioned war the world may yet suffer, the 
example set by the United States and its supreme military hero will not be 
forgotten ; nor can it cease to be a wholesome influence among the nations, 
protesting perpetually against any and all wars not absolutely demanded by 
the public good." 

The Toi'onto Globe said : " He has filled a large space in the history of 
his country, and as the dust of current controversy settles down and the 
mist of contemporary prejudice clears away, he will, we believe, be univer- 
sally recognized as one of her chief worthies, one who had a great work 
to do, and who, upon the whole, did it in a manful, honest and honorable 
fashion." 

The New York Graphic said: "The qualities which made Ulysses S.Grant 
a conspicuous and striking figure in the history of the United States never shone 
with greater lustre than during the lingering months when the hand of death 
was pressing painfully upon him. Crippled in fortune and disabled by ac- 
cident, the tidings came to him that his days were numbered by reason of an 
insidious and enfeebling disease. Where most men would have given way to 
despair, his spirit nerved and strengthened both intellect andbody to sustained 
effort, and he lived to finish his book and feel assured that those dependent 
upon him would not be unprovided for. This struggle proved, more than any 
battle he ever fought, the sterling metde that was in the man. Peace to his 
ashes ! In his entire career, filled with splendid services and distinctions as it 
has been, there is nothing more noble or inspiring than the uncomplaining 
gentleness and calmness with which he bore the painful probation leading to 
his death." 

T\\^ New York Telegram ^-a^^'. "Wholly free from ostentation, and even 
from apparent consciousness of his exalted dignity as Commander-in-Chief of 
the armies of the United States in presence of the enemy, unflinching as steel 
in the performance of his military duty, though the grief of a people rested 
upon his shoulders, and as clearsighted as the eagle in his perception of this duty. 
General Grant was as thoughtless of his own material advantage as was the su- 
preme commander through the other great convulsion in our American history. 
Outside of his military duty the famous General was tender-hearted as a 
woman— too confiding, perhaps, in human virtue, which was sometimes absent 
where he looked to find it. Day by day, during many months, touched with 
emotion by the sufferings of the old hero, borne so patiently, men's minds have 
recalled, especially among his whilom Southern foes, affecting instances of his 
personal kindness to the vanquished, to non-combatants, to children and to 
common soldiers of his own armies." 

The Brooklyn Unio7i said: " The career of General Grant has been marked 
by more vivid contrasts than that of perhaps any other American. His credit- 
able service in the Mexican War was followed by a period of such dense ob- 
scurity that there seemed no more chance of a future for him than for any 
other plain worker in a tannery. The outbreak of the rebellion brought him 
his opportunity, and within a brief space he had not only been hailed as the 
saviour of the nation, but also recognized as one of the greatest generals of 
history. The Presidency for eight years came to him without a struggle, and 
later his trip around the world as the honored guest of all its chief rulers placed 
him at the pinnacle of fame. From this dizzy height he was within a short 
period dragged down to the humiliation of poverty through a business failure 
which was rendered especially hard to bear by the discovery that he had been 
innocently employed as a stool pigeon by a conscienceless swindler whom he 
believed to be a faithful friend." 



TRIBUTES OF THE PRESS, 655 

The Brooklyn Eagle said : " General Grant is dead, and one more figure of 
heroic mould stands in the pantheon of American hberty. The patient, puri- 
hed and dauntless spirit that vanished from the sight of man this morning will 
henceforth live imperishably in the memory of the Republic. Like gold'from 
the furnace of the refiner, the character of our greatest soldier emerges from 
the crucible of disease cleansed from every infirmity and fitted to circulate as ster- 
' ling coin in the moral exchanges of the world. To describe the event as a public 
calamity, or invite the American people to bow down in sorrow, would be to use 
the language ofthoghtless conventionalism. In the presence of a career dazzling 
with splendid achievements, brought to a close under every circumstance that 
could elevate the heart, allay the animosities and sweeten the sympathies of 
mankind, there issmall room for lamentation, When the promise of youth is 
nipped in the bud, when genius is smitten to the dust in the press, and middle 
of lofty adventures, when the pillar of a people's hopes falls in the very hour 
when its sustaining strength can least be spared, grief may well appear. But 
no promise of dawning life has perished unfulfilled in the case of Ulysses S. 
Grant; what he was born to do has been fully accomplished, and every hope 
that rested upon his sword in days gone by is now an invincible guardian of 
the land.'' 

The Philadelphia Times said: "In all the more than century of American 
greatness no man has more impressed his individuality upon the country and 
the world than has General Grant. Washington was wiser than Grant ; Jef- 
ferson was vastly abler and more philosophical : Jackson was more despotic and 
yet more the man of sentiment ; Lincoln was more sagacious, more patient 
and more tolerant, and Garfield was more scholarly and broader in statesman- 
ship; but no one man of our history so distinctively emphasized his indi- 
viduality in war and in peace, in the field and in statesmanship, as did 
General Grant. He had none of the ornate characteristics of Clay; none of 
the ostentation of Scott; none of the impetuous qualities of Sherman. What 
he was, he was of himself and by himself, a self-creation whose history puzzles 
the reckoning of the world and makes romance pale before it. The thought- 
less would scan the surface of his record from the multiplied ill-fortune of 
early life to the highest stepping in the round of fame, and call it accident; 
but accidents build no such structures of imperishable renown." 

The Philadelphia Press said: "The nation's loss is not measured by the 
vacant place. For nearly a decade Grant had been only a private citizen ; he 
wielded no sceptre of authority ; he exercised no sway in the public councils; 
but he was none the less one of the great reserve forces of the republic. He 
was everywhere felt, not merely by what he had done, but by what he was. 
Gladstone has laid down the reins of government ; Bismarck has practically 
completed his colossal work ; but all men know that England bereft of the one 
or Germany deprived of the other would lose an element of moral power. So 
Grant belonged to the order of kingly men, and his impress on mankind will 
be emphasized, as all nations look to America to-day and feel that a pillar of 
strength has fallen. Great men, said Burke, are the guide-posts and land- 
marks of the state ; and Grant was the guide-post of a victorious war and a 
landmark of a magnanimous peace. The American people themselves will 
judge him now, after the calm evening and the serene repose of retirement, 
more justly than in the stress and storm of struggle." 

The Boston Traiiscript said ; " His generous and confiding nature was such 
that even his mistakes, public and private, added to the universal respect now 
accorded to his character. His habit of stoutly clinging to friends who abused 
the opportunities they obtained through his exalted position is seen to have 
been a rooted element of his nature which found its truest illustration in the 
iidelity and singleness of purpose he brought to the service of his country in 



656 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

the crisis of its fate. This grim, imperturbable man, of Cromwelhan will and 
Scotch ancestry, was a soldier in every fibre of his being. He was born for 
the camp and the battle-held. If the cannon's roar did not serve to clear his 
intellect, as was said of one of Napoleon's famous marshals, it hardened his 
determination never to acknowledge defeat. When others believed important 
battles lost he had just begun the serious work committed to his hand. He 
was slandered in the heat of the conflict by being stigmatized as merely a dog- 
ged fighter — a reckless sacrificer of human life — when no one welcomed the 
close of hostilities that stopped the further effusion of blood with greater joy 
and gratitude than did General Grant." 

The JS/ew Haven Palladium said: " General Grant was great in every way. 
He was not only a great soldier, but a great man. The qualities of mind with 
which nature endowed him, linked with a moral heroism equal to any emer- 
gency — and never more strikingly illustrated than during the past few months 
of terrible suffering — made him easily a leader of men and a master of affairs. 
As a soldier, patriot, statesman, citizen, he stands as the peer, if not the su- 
perior, of any man of his day and generation. Self-controlled, self-centred, 
modest, brave, he was God's best gift to the Republic in her hour of direst need. 
His record as a soldier, as President, as a private citizen, taken as a whole, 
is as clear and clean as that of any American who ever held the same exalted 
position. As a man he was faithful in friendship, untarnished in honor, kind 
in feeling and generous and noble in impulse. It has been said of him that he 
never violated a confidence or betrayed a cause committed to his keeping. 
Whatever mistakes he may have made lay at the door of his good qualities.'' 

The Albany Express said: "It is a blessed and comforting reflection to 
know that North and South, his political friends and foes, everywhere in the 
land, have been drawing closer and closer in friendliness for the beloved of 
the nation. He has conquered calumny. He has restored our faith in human 
nature, by proving that the hearts of his enemies could be won ; enemies no 
longer, but brothers in this common bond of love and grief which fills our 
hearts to-day." 

The Portland Press, of Maine, said : " As the name of Washington instinc- 
tively recalls the heroic struggle which made us a nation, so the name of 
Grant will ever recall, not the many and important events of his civil adminis- 
trations, fraught with deep moment to the nation though they were, but 
the battles and sieges of that great struggle ending at Appomattox, which 
preserved the Union, abolished slavery and made America in truth, as well as 
name, the land of the free. Coupled with admiration for his military genius 
will be admiration for his patriotism and his unselfish devotion to his country. 
Napoleon unsheathed the sword to gratify the lonjings of ambition. Personal 
aggrandizement, the lust of power, were the mainsprings of the Corsican's 
brilliant campaigns. The world admires his military genius, but it detests 
the motives that kept it in action. But General Grant consecrated his genius 
to the service of the nation, and from the day that he unsheathed his sword 
until he returned it to its scabbard it was for his country that he planned and 
fought and endured. Rarely, indeed, has the world beheld a commander 
endowed with genius so brilliant as his ; but far more rarely has it held one so 
gifted and yet so free from moral blemish. He was one of the verv few cap- 
tains of ancient or modern times of whom it can be truthfully said that he 
fought simply to maintain the supremacy of law and break down injustice." 

The Detroit Post, of Michigan, said: " Only his greatness is immortal, and 
will still live to influence the destiny and character of the nation he served and 
loved. Whatever of animosities or differences may have -marked his career 
will now all be put away, and his memory will become the common heritage 
and pride of the whole American people, who will remember him everywhere 



TRIBUTES OF THE PRESS. 657 

only as ' one of the simple great ones gone/ whose virtues have helped greatly 
to make us what we are and shall be, and who will forever shine in history 
for the admiration and emulation of mankind." 

The Provide7ice Journal oi Rhode Island said : " The lingering illness of Gen- 
eral Grant has been a sad tragedy. Lincoln's end was more tragic ; Garfield's 
taking off was more starthng, and had in it much of the same deep pathos. 
Both Garfield and Grant excited the tenderest sympathy and pity by the heroic 
struggle which each made against an inevitable fate. But there has been 
bomething peculiarly sad in General Grant's fight with death ; the disease 
itself was so dreadful, the pain so agonizing, the struggle so hopeless from the 
beginning, the treachery that enveloped the sufferer in utter financial ruin was 
so "cruel and heartless. ' The mind can imagine few more pitiful pictures than 
this of a great man silently and patiently bearing bodily pain and mental 
agony, and warding off death till he could tell his story to the world and leave 
to his children something of that which thieves had robbed him of." 

The Philadelphia Herald said : " Perhaps the most interesting and most 
remarkable feature of General Grant's character was its simplicity ; the com- 
plete absence from it of affectation. He never posed. He never studied effects. 
He had a plain, straightforward way of saying and doing things. No great 
soldier whom this country or any other country has produced was like him in 
this respect. None of our Presidents, with the exception of Jackson and Lin- 
coin, were so simple and unpretentious. 

"It would be impossible, after going over General Grant's life, to find any 
act of his marked by grandiloquence or vanity or pride of station. His per- 
sonal demeanor was modest and retiring. No matter how great or dramatic 
the situation might be in the eyes of the world and of history, it could not 
move him to make an undue assertion of himself. Some people used to call 
this mere stolidity, but the glimpses which we have all had of his home-life 
during the past few months show that this was a mistake, that he was a man 
of sensitive feelings, and that what we once supposed was indifference was 
simply his wonderful self-command." 

The Syracuse Star said : " The American quality which the great commander 
displayed in an exalted degree was steadfastness. At Shiloh by that quality 
he held his army against the massive charges of Johnston, by that he wore 
away the resisting power of the walls of Vicksburg, and by that he sustained 
the desperate assaults of Lee in the last campaign before Richmond while he 
closed an iron grasp about the struggling rebel chief. The wonderful resolute- 
ness of this man entered into most of his sayings which have become renowned, 
such as ' I shall fight it out on this line if it takes all summer ; ' ' I propose to 
move immediately upon your works,' and it is an inseparable element in the 
popular conception of his character. Having conceived a plan and fixed his 
purpose upon an object, he proceeded with an energy that crumbled all in its 
way. He represents to the American mind its cool, persistent heroism, as 
Wellington reflects to the English mind a like virtue of its possessing." 

T\i& Rutland Herald s-^\6.:'' i:\vQXQ\s one striking lesson in his life which 
may be seen plainly now, and that is the supreme value of personal integrity. 
This man was given all the honors and power to be had under our govern- 
ment ; he stood as the representative of the army of one-half of the country 
which conquered the other half in a desperate struggle ; he acted as President 
in a trying time, offended powerful men right and left, was attacked in pohtics 
for a dozen years with a bitterness unequaled by anything in recent American 
history, and he was very unfortunately involved in a great financial failure at 
last; but yet no man ever said that U. S. Grant was not honest, Because of 
this — of this uprightness within the four fleshy walls of the man, so firm and 
strong as to command universal recognition — a feeling has been shown toward 

42 



658 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



him in his sickness which was very significant and inexpressibly touching. All 
enmity has disappeared before it in sober fact, and even bitter rebels have 
joined heartily in the comnioii expression. It is very rarely that men win such 
esteem from their fellows, and perhaps never in the world has one lived to see 
it manifested as General Grant saw it." 

The Cmcmnaii Commercial Gazette smd: " No man, or at least few men, 
ever lived who will stand higher in history than the dead soldier, General 
Grant. For him to-day a great nation mourns. This is not assumed either. It 
IS real. In life he had antagonisms. He had faults. The perfect man has never 
lived. He was often judged unfairly. This is the fate of men who are thrown 
into an active pohtical hfe. General Grant is not an exception. Washing- 
ton suffered more in this respect than he, Lincoln quite as much, and these are 
the three great names that can be properly and equally linked together in the 
cause of liberty and civilization, and the difference is so slight, if, indeed, there 
is any difference, that it v/ould be hard to tell which was the greatest. Wash- 
ington passed into history as the Father of his Country. Lincoln and Grant 
have passed into history as the saviours of the country that Washington led 
into existence, and now these three are united." 

The Boston Globe, Massachusetts, said: " It was the belief in olden time 
that none could see the sacred cup sought by the knights of Arthur's Round 
Table save he who had been chastened till perfect purity pervaded his being. 
In these days we look not for any stainless man, yet should we search the wide 
world through we could not find one whom all men would say had passed 
through the fiery furnace of greatness with less harm, had trodden the rough 
road of adversity with more grandeur, than this man who has just died. From 
the day when he entered Vicksburg, past the day when he refused Lee's sword, 
past the day when he laid off the robes of state, past the day when the treachery 
of trusted wretches made him a dependent on the charity of others, down to the 
day which ended the long fight with death, he endured praise and blame, 
he passed through shame and glory, with a manhness that made him the first 
of men." 

'Wv^ Newark Advertiser S2\d\i: "Not in this generation will the American 
Republic be called to lament the departure of a citizen so distinguished and so 
beloved. Some high official may die and plunge into perfunctory mourning 
the land over which he has held authority. But never again in the lifetmie of 
mature men, now standing with throbbing hearts by the grave of Grant, can 
the country be so deeply stirred by the departure of an American so eminent 
and so firmly fixed in the affectionate respect of his fellow-men. The death of 
Grant marks an epoch in the history of the United States. A noble and alto- 
gether unique figure in our national life has disappeared from the haunts of 
living men. He on whom his fellow-countrymen depended with an unshaken 
confidence in the darkest hours of the Republic is no more. But so long as 
patriotism dwells among men, so long as manly courage and fixity in lofty 
purpose are respected, so long as valor and mighty service are held in honor, 
Grant's name and fame are secure. His mortal part may be dissolved, but the 
nation on whose history he shed so much lustre, and into whose stability he 
built his life and labors, remains his enduring monument." 

The Richmond Dispatch, of Virginia, said: "There was nothing small 
about General Grant, no Punic faith, no perfidious element, no jealousy. His 
chivalrous spirit would not permit him to ask Lee or his officers for their 
swords or Lee's men for their horses. 'Go in peace,' was the substance of his 
treatment of the heroes who surrendered at Appomattox Court-House. His 
fidelitv to his not assumed, but presumed or supposed, obligations— his lovalty 
to truth and justice— caused him to forbid that General Lee should be arrected 
or annoyed by the federal authorities. Even Mosby, whom the Northern 



I 



TRIBUTES OF THE PRESS. 659 

people styled a bushwhacker and guerrilla, was protected in all his ri-hts by 
Grant, and afterwards by him appointed to federal office. When investigation 
convinced him that he and the army officers had wronged Fitz-Tohn Porter 
he at once recanted his former belief and addressed himself to the task of 
righting the wrong, never for a moment hesitating because General Loo-an 
and nearly all the rest of the Repubhcan Senators were arrayed against him." 

The Richmond Whig, of Virginia, said: "It is with sincere sorrow that we 
announce the death of General U. S. Grant, which occurred at Mount Mc- 
Gregor, NY on the morning of July 23, at eight minutes past eight. 

General Grant has been a sufferer from an incurable disease for several 
months past. During his illness no word of complaint has escaped his lips- 
resignedly he has borne his great sufferings, and peacefully he passed away' 
surrounded by his family. ^ v y> 

"As a tribute of respect to the -reat soldier, patriot and statesman, we place 
the columns of the Whtsr in mournin<y " , t^ v. 

The Norfolk Landmark, of Virginia, said: "The people of this Republic 
without regard to section or latitude, will lament the death of General Grant' 
sorne account of which is elsewhere published. His end was peculiarly sad 
and pathetic. His recent past was shadowed by misfortune, but we are 
Heartily glad that his disappointments were somewhat assuacred by his restora- 
ti^on to the service of which he was once the most conspicuous ornament 
General Grant was a successful commander, and whatever may be thouo-ht of 
his relative rank among military celebrities of the world, he will alwavs^ive 
just credit for certain great qualities which he possessed in a remarkable 
degree. He was brave, clear-headed, tenacious and capable of that self- 
rehance which is so necessary to success in war, and he was not lackino- in 
the magnanimous temper which goes with courage." '^ 

T^^ Wheeling Register, of West Virginia, said: "The hero and patiiot 
General Grant, after a long and brave struggle, has fought his last battle and 
gone to reap his reward. The same indomitable spirit that ever moved him 
in the many conflicts of the days gone by remained with him and supported 
him till the last. The world has been looking on in breathless silence and 
when all was over wires flashed the sad, but not unexpected, news from ocean 
to ocean. The nation mourns the old commander, and in all parts of the 
country fitting tributes are offered up to his memory. Sectional strife that once 
engendered hatred is forgotten, and as the brave, battle-scarred veterans who 
once fought as enemies, inherit the old hero's last work, dedicated 'To the 
Soldiers of the American Armies," so will they claim General Grant as all 
their own. Though they may hold him as a sacred inheritance, yet he is not 
all theirs. The greatness and nobleness of his character and the splendor of 
his achievements reach out even beyond his own land and become the heri- 
tage of the entire human race. The American people, regardless of party or 
section, will ever cherish him as a hero, as a patriot, as a man, and the world 
will deservingly do him reverence as one of her greatest and noblest." 

The Indianapolis Journal, of Indiana, said: "'There were heroes before 
Agamemnon ; ' so there will be heroes after Grant, but in his day and crenera- 
tion he had no equal. Stern in war, demanding evervthing that was^'neces- 
sary to preserve the honor and dignity of his country, yet his magnanimity to 
the conquered surpassed even his valor in the field. His sole aim was the 
honor, the glory and the perpetuity of his country. General Grant is dead 
A united country, North, South, East and West, mourns at the grave of its 
grandest, greatest and yet most merciful soldier." 

The Buffalo Commercial Advertiser s^\^: "Grant is dead! The last battle 
has been fought; he had to surrender; but how glorious has been the struggle! 



66o LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

how sublime the submission ! In Grant's hfe there was everything to appeal 
to the ambition and the emulation of the living; in Grant's way of meeting 
death there was everything to stimulate the fortitude, the admiration, the 
imitation of his fellow-men who, like him, wait for the summons that humanity 
must obey." 

The news of the death of General Grant created a profound 
impression in London. The flags at the American Exchange and 
at the American Consulate were placed at half-mast the moment 
the news reached the city. Large portraits of the dead hero, 
draped in mourning, were placed over the balconies and doors of 
both buildinsis. The whole front of the American Exchange was 
also heavily draped. 

Mr. Gladstone and Mr. John Bright were both much affected on 
receiving a copy of the despatch announcing the death of General 
Grant. 

United States Minister Phelps, on being handed a copy of the 
despatch announcing General Grant's death, expressed the greatest 
concern at the sad event. He instantly ordered the building of the 
American Legation to be draped in mourning and the flag placed 
at half-mast. 

A correspondent visited Mr. Gladstone's residence and was 
received by Mrs. Gladstone. On making known his errand Mrs. 
Gladstone expressed deep sorrow at the death of the eminent 
American, and immediately conducted him to Mr. Gladstone's 
presence. The great man was writing at a desk in his library. 

Mr. Gladstone said: — "I will willingly pay my humble tribute. 
Let me write rather than speak it." He then wrote as follows : 

" Mr. Gladstone has heard with regret the sad news of General Grant's 
death. He ventures to assure the bereaved family of the sympathy he feels 
with them in their affliction at the loss of one who had rendered his country 
such signal services as a general and a statesman." 

Mr. John Bright, in an interview at the Reform Club, said : 

" I desire to express my sympathy with the family of General Grant in the 
sorrow through which they are passing.'' 

The London Daily News said : " There have been few braver men than 
Grant. England will sincerely regret his death. It is as a soldier that he will 
be remembered. It is on his military services that his fame will rest. After 
Lincoln's death Grant was decidedly the most popular man in the United 
States. His quarrel with Johnson did not diminish this. He was essentially 
a man of action, not of speech.. His name will ever be associated with the 
great and righteous struggle of which Lincoln was the brain and heart and 
Grant the arm and weapon." 

The London Daily Telegraph devoted two columns to a review of Grant's 
military career. Editorially it said : " Yesterday the greatest and most successful 
so dier that the United States has produced breathed his last. In no portion 
of the United States have the financial disasters marking the close of General 
Grant's career been regarded with more sympathy and regret than in England. 
Beyond all others, he was best fitted to cope with the tremendous crisis which 
made him, and when the grave closed over all that is mortal of Ulysses 



TRIBUTES OF THE PRESS. 66l 

Simpson Grant, it was felt that he left behind him no man cast in a simpler, 
sincerer or more heroic mould." 

The Post sa.\d: "The American republic has lost one of its most illustrious 
citizens. General Grant will be best remembered as the able soldier who pre- 
vented the final severance of the great republic. It is thus that he will be 
known to posterity. Though not a Napoleon or a Wellington, he handled 
large armies and led them to victory." 

The Standard said: "Although the death of General Grant was long 
expected, the event is not the less deplored. We can only share with his 
mourning countrymen in a sense of the loss of one whose career was so 
notable, so honorable to himself and so useful to his native land. If that 
were possible, he even rose in popularity when the nation saw the way he faced 
poverty and ruin. Simple and modest, he was never cast down by reverses 
nor elated by prosoerity. Never a great strategist, he knew only one course, 
namely, to fight. To-day, from Cape Cod to the Alaskan isles,' the land will 
once more resound with the fading memories of the war." 

The news of General Grant's death caused universal regret 
throughout the State of Kentucky. Men of prominence who were 
soldiers, and men who have never seen the smoke of battle, united in 
re-echoing the sentiment expressed by that gallant Southern soldier, 
General Basil Duke, who said: 

"All bitterness of feeling toward General Grant, which has been formerly 
entertained, arising either out of the antagonisms of the war or the deeper 
animosities of the reconstruction period, have long since passed avvay in this 
region, at least, and he has had in the troubles which beset the latter years of 
his life and in his last illness no profounder sympathy from any source than 
from the ex-Confederate soldiery. They recognize in two acts of his life a 
spirit for which they must be cordially grateful. They remember that immedi- 
ately after the close of the war, when its resentments were yet fierce, and few 
public men in the North dared speak kindly of the Southern people, even if 
they felt so, and when it was the fashion to make treason odious, in the fa- 
mous expression of Andy Johnson, General Grant, after an extended trip through 
the Southern States, reported that the Southern people would be true to their 
pledges of peace, and that they ought to be trusted. The other instance is bet- 
ter known and even more kindly remembered, when he forced Stanton to re- 
cede from his purpose of arresting General Lee and revoking the paroles of the 
Confederates. We had learned before, his pluck and tenacity in the field. We 
realized after those exhibitions of his character that he had the courage to op- • 
pose his own people and pohtical associates when he deemed them in the 
wrong, and the highest order of generosity and patriotism. The Southern 
people will always forgive what may have been General Grant's political errors 
and faults, out of consideration for the high and manly qualities and intuitive 
wisdom he displayed in every real emergency. Many men are shrewder poli- 
ticians than he, who are not really as great statesmen. We lament his death 
and honor his memory.'' 

The daily papers all eulogized the 'dead General, and the several 
posts of the Grand Army of the Republic, at their meetings, passed 
resolutions of sorrow. 

The Columbia Register said : " The death of General Grant will be honestly 
felt as a national affliction all over the wide Union, without reference to section 
or party. Every man had his faults, and General Grant had his. Now that 
he has gone, we will remember him at the South as the gajlant old soldier who 



662 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

was generous to a fallen foe. As to his civil life, let it be swallowed up in the 
hfe and services of the great chieftain who led the Northern armies through seas 
of blood to final victory. Let us all remember General Grant from the stand- 
point from which most admired him, that of a true soldier and generous foe. 
Without any experience whatever as a civilian, he was necessarily misled. Now 
that he is gone, the South will recall only the fact that he issued rations at once 
to the beaten Confederates, and, as far as possible, generously administered 
to their comfort. We at the South shall all ever believe that if General Grant 
had followed his own natural instincts, it would have been reserved for no other 
man to bridge the bloody chasm. He, of all Americans, could have most ef- 
fectually done it, and those who thwarted this good purpose, which we know 
the old General at one time had at heart, have deprived an illustrious name of 
that splendid deed which would have so nobly rounded off the fame of Ulysses 
S. Grant." 

In speaking of the affliction the nation has suffered in the death 
of General Grant, Harpers Weekly of August i, 1885, said: 

" After a long and painful illness, borne with characteristic patience and 
gentleness. General Grant is dead. It is an event to be associated in our 
history with the death of Washington, of Adams and Jefferson, and of Lincoln ; 
for Grant, like them, was one of the greatest of Americans at a great epoch. 
In the same sense that the sword of Washington secured our independence 
did the sword of Grant maintain the Union, and of the war for the Union 
Lincoln and Grant will be always the two conspicuous and representative 
figures. Grant's distinction, also, is of that unalloyed quality which is 
characteristic both of Washington and Lincoln. It is a greatness unmixed 
with personal ambition, the greatness of an honest patriot, not of a selfish 
soldier like Marlborough, nor of an unprincipled conqueror like Napoleon. 
No great national cause in which not only the welfare of a country but the 
fate of human liberty was involved was ever more fortunate in its civic and its 
military chiefs than the cause of American union in Lincoln and Grant. 

" In the fierce height and frenzy of the war the same equable temperament, 
the unshaken judgment, the cool comprehension, which have led to the denial 
of military genius to Washington, withheld it also from Grant. But no view 
of the military situation was larger or juster than Grant's, and no famous 
career was more signally successful. He apprehended clearly the nature of 
the armed contest, and knew when the Confederacy had become, in a mihtary 
sense, "a shell," as he described it. Always calm and self-possessed, of an 
alert and decisive mind, upon the field he was firm without fury, swift without 
eagerness, and confident without folly. Like Washington, he was prudent, 
and like Lincoln, magnanimous. Had Lincoln died before the war ended, the 
heart of the people would have sunk. Had Grant fallen upon the field, the 
event of the war would have seemed doubtful. He was an unconditional 
victor, yet so manly, so simple, so single-hearted, that his adversaries in battle 
cherished no ill-will, and no words of sympathy, respect and admiration are 
sincerer than those which they have spoken since his illness and anticipated 
death. Between Grant and the chief soldiers to whom he was opposed there 
was the mutual respect of men who. recognize an honest conviction and delight 
in heroic constancy, and nothing in history is finer than the generous feeling 
between them of these later days. 

" The death of Mr. Lincoln and the end of the war left Grant by far the most 
eminent American and the inevitable President. He had little knowledge of 
politics or politicians, and he had cast but one vote before he was elected to 
the Chief Magistracy. The argument that it is a trust requiring a certain civic 
training and political knowledge was overruled by the fact of his universal 
popularity as the hero of the war, by his strong and incorruptible character, 



TRIBUTES OF THE PRESS. 663 

and by the purity of his patriotism. It was, moreover, most fortunate, after the 
chaos of Andrew Johnson^s administration, which had inflamed feehng and 
arrested the normal process of settlement, that the man who especially 
represented the cause of the Union, not as a political partisan, but solely as a 
magnanimous patriot, should be called to the highest office. His election 
shotved the practical unity of the Union sentiment, and its significance was 
fullv apprehended. His presence in the White House itself kept the peace, 
and undoubtedly saved the country serious trouble. General Grant's vv^ant of 
political training and unfamiliari'ty with public affairs, and his necessary 
dependence upon those whom he supposed to be political experts, prevented 
his dealing vigorously with the mischievous tendencies which are always 
developed In the successful party after a civil convulsion. But panoplied in 
the same honest and simple patriotism which had made his military career illus- 
trious, he was personally untouched by suspicion, and after a tour of the world in 
which every countrv paid him homage, and an unwise effort of some political 
friends to call him again into public life, he withdrew to an honored 'retirement. 
But by the greatness of his services he was necessarily the most eminent 
American citfzen.and in his private, as in his pubhc life, he was stiU the centre 
of constant interest and observation. And in these last days ot suffering, 
o-raduallv declining to the inevitable end, the spectacle of his tranquil and 
manlv fortitude was one that will be long cherished, while the last great service 
of the true patriot will never be forgotten. That service lay in the hearty and 
unreserved friendliness of his tone of speech and feeling toward those who had 
fought against the Union. His last magnanimous words breathe the spirit 
whi'ch can alone compose Ungering differences and complete a moral reunion. 
This highest of patriotic ends also he has served with his latest strength. The 
country^which truly mourns him may well receive the spirit of those words as 
a benediction and an exhortation. In the best and truest sense the victorious 
General in a civil war, the official leader and pride of a historic political party, 
he died at peace with all men, and universally honored as a manly, simple, 
true-hearted patriot. Twice he filled the highest office in the country ; but it is 
bv the inestimable service which brought him into the Presidency, rather than 
by his Presidency itself, that he will be remembered. He was silent, tenacious, 
enduring, and as with every man to whom it is given to render the highest 
service fo his countrv, the clouds of differing judgment of incidents and details 
will gradually yield to the pure and steady sunlight of permanent fame and 
national gratitude." 

General John A. Logan, United States Senator from Illinois, 
wrote as follows : 

"The nation mourns Ulysses S.Grant, and none more sincerely than his 
old associates in arms. Emerging from obscurity, he rapidly developed into 
one of the greatest men of the times. As a military genius and strategist, in 
my judgment, he has had no equal since the days of Julius Ccnesar. As a 
patriot and lover of his country, none surpassed him. As a man of sound 
judgment in reference to matters pertaining to national affairs, he was the 
equal of any one. He was a most confiding man : was strictly honest and 
truthful, and believed implicitily in the honesty and truthfulness of every 
one until the contrary was made' to appear. If to have such confidence be a 
fault, it was a grievous one in him, it being the cause of all the serious trouble 
I ever knew him to have. As a husband and father, he was kindness itself. 
Grant was a great man, and he was a good man." 

Hon. Joseph E. Brown, United States Senator from Georgia, 
contributes the following, which expresses the feelings of the 
South : — 



664 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

" The people of Georgia unite with the people of the whole Union in de- 
ploring the death of that patriotic gentleman and magnificent soldier U. S. 
Grant. The magnanimity of his character and the brillancy of his achieve- 
ments have stamped him as one of the greatest soldiers of any age. His 
name is a household word in every civilized nation, and his fame is the 
common heritage of the whole American people, North, South, East and 
West, Posterity will never cease to do honor to his memory, and the patriotic 
hearts of unborn millions will swell with pride at the mention of his great 
deeds.'' 

Hon. Henry L. Dawes, United States Senator from Massachu- 
setts, speaks thus of the dead General : — 

" I thought I was prepared to hear of the death of General Grant with com- 
posure; but I am mistaken. Now that it has come, I am overwhelmed with 
the sense of irreparable loss, and with the retrospect of twenty-five years of 
marvel and miracle to which I turn. I first saw hmi, a newly-made brigadier, 
spending an evening just after the battle of Belmont, with his friend, E. B. 
Washburne, in St. Louis. I next saw him when, covered with renown, he 
came to Washington, in the worn garb of a fighting soldier, to receive, from 
the hand of Abraham Lincoln, the commission of Lieutenant-General. I last 
saw him when he had already entered upon that struggle to which alone he 
was unequal ; and, after the final issue had become too painfully evident, 
the conviction that, in the modest, unpretentious, and plain brigadier of few 
words, I had met a man of rare endowments, took fast hold of me. In the 
outset, how the whole outline of incomparable greatness has been filled and 
rounded out to completeness, need not be told, now that the great life has 
ended, and his work is finished. The world stands uncovered in the pres- 
ence of this matchless character. Military greatness the judgment of man- 
kind has already accorded to him ; but greatness in all else that became a 
man was equally his due. In the cabinet, as well as on the field, in all that 
is noble, as v/ell as in all that is heroic, he was truly great. In dark days 
and in prosperous, in the hour of peril, and in that of victory, he was greatest 
among all the men with whom he lived. In all that is truthful, in all that is 
generous, in all that is tender and lovable, he was equally great. A hero in 
all that pertains to a remarkable life, he was a greater hero when death came. 
Those who did not come near enough to him to know all he was, cannot 
mourn him as those will who did ; but his countrymen and the world will 
reverence his memory, and pay tribute to his worth and his greatness so long 
as the nation he saved shall endure.'' 

Hon. Hamilton Fish, LL.D., Secretary of State during 
the eight years that General Grant occupied the Presiden- 
tial chair, wrote as follows of his intimate friend: 

" My acquaintance with General Grant began in 1865. in Philadelphia, on 
his first visit to the North, after the close of the war. Thereafter I saw him 
frequently. His son (Col. Fred. D. Grant) was a cadet at West Point, and the 
General and his family often went there to see him. My country residence is on 
the Hudson River, immediately opposite West Point, and, on the occasion of one 
of his visits, I invited him to make my house his home on such occasions, and 
thereafter he and his family were freOiuendy my guests. Thus acquaintance 
grew into intimacy, and ripened into friendship. 

" You ask, What were his most prominent traits of character? Well, with a 
man so full of strong distinctive traits, it is hard to say which may be most 
prominent; but I have been much impressed by his steady firmness and his 
generous magnanimity. His whole military career manifested his firmness 
both of purpose and of action. His answer to the War Department, ' I will 



TRIBUTES OF THE PRESS. 665 

fight it out on this hne if it takes all summer,' was but the spontaneous utterance 
of his general fixedness of purpose. 

" He was generous and forgiving in the extreme ; not that he could not hate 
well when he had cause for hating, but he never did hate without having or 
thinking that he had sufficient cause, and was ever ready for an explanation 
and reconciliation. With few exceptions his dislikes were not long cherished. 
He was too busy and too generous 10 nurse them. 

" His unselfish generosity at the fall of Richmond and the surrender of 
Appomattox, stand out among the most noted instances of magnanimity on the 
part of a conqueror. He sought no triumphal entry into the Confederate 
capital, which had been the objective point of years of manoeuvering and of 
fighting ; he fed the army which he had defeated, and gave to Lee and his 
army terms of capitulation and surrender that commanded the admiration of 
the civilized world, and to this day receive the grateful acknowledgment of 
those who were their recipients. 

" After Sherman had accepted terms of surrender from Johnston, which the 
Government had so far disapproved as to send Grant to supersede him, instead 
of taking to himself the credit of Johnston's surrender, on terms satisfactory to 
the Government and to the people, he telegraphed, ' Johnston has surrendered 
to Sherman,' leaving the full credit to Sherman of what he himself had ac- 
complished. 

" On his tour through the South after the war. to investigate, for the Govern- 
ment, the condition of the people, he showed a broad, generous spirit. His 
report was denounced by some politicians in Washington as a ' white-washing 
report ' ; but, had it been acted upon, there would have been no ' solid South,' 
and the restoration of good feeling would have taken place soon after the war 
had closed. 

" His feeling toward the South was, throughout his civil administration, in 
accord with that which he had exhibited in dictating the terms of surrender to 
Lee — full of generosity and of confidence. That confidence arose from the 
respect which a brave soldier has for the bravery and sincerity of those w'hom 
he has fought, and was undoubtedly increased by his visit through the South 
shortly after the war had closed. 

"He was anxious to give appointments to Southern men ; but, in several 
instances, gentlemen from the South, who had been engaged in the Rebellion, 
and to whom he was willing to offer appointments, refused to accept them. 

" The President, in the disposal of offices over the wide extent of the United 
States, must depend upon the representations of others for his information as to 
the character and capacity of the larger number of those who are to fill the 
public offices on his appointment. These representations are not always 
candid, and even when honestly given, are not always correct. Unfortunately 
— perhaps owing to the quarrel between Andrew Johnson and the Congress, or 
from whatever cause, and notwithstanding the very friendly and favorable 
report of the feeling and the behavior of the Southern people made by Grant to 
Congress, after his tour through their states — the Southern men of note and of 
prominence held themselves aloof, and not only would not volunteer advice, 
but often withheld information when asked. 

" The result was inevitable. At the close of the war, the condition of the 
South, now opened to a new class of labor, seemed to afford a wide field for 
industry and enterprise, and tempted a large class of men from the North, 
whose business had been broken up by the war, to seek their fortunes, and to 
cast their lot with the South. 

"The South had had little experience in 'immigrant' population. It was 
jealous and suspicious of the new comers ; perhaps, under the circumstances, 
not unnaturally so, but very unfortunately so. Of those who went among 
them, very many were men of character, enterprise and simple purpose^ 



666 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

migrating with none other than a sincere desire of becoming part and parcel of 
the community among whom they went. Others there were — adventurers of 
the ' Dugald Dalgetty ' stripe — ready to take whatever chance might throw in 
their way. Their ' chances " were advanced by the quarrel, then at its height, 
between President Johnson and the Congress, and they lost no opportunity of 
playing upon the passions already unduly excited. The North was flooded 
with accounts of indignities and outrages heaped upon Northern men, and of 
the continued disloyalty of the South; and the South, smarting under its defeat 
and loss of property, isolated itself, and became united in a political combina- 
tion bitter in its antagonism to the ruling power in the Nation. Such was the 
condition when General Grant came to the Presidency, and found nearly all of 
the federal offices at the South filled by men of Northern birth. He felt the 
Avrong of such condition, and desired to change it; but the reticence of 
Southern men, and their unwillingness to co-operate with him, or to give 
advice or information to aid him in the matter of appointments to office, left 
him unable to carry his wishes in this regard into effect. 

"His knowledge of men was generally accurate; but he was apt, in this 
respect, as in others, to reach his conclusions rapidly, and was thus not 
infrequently led to give his confidence where it was not deserved ; and it was 
from the abuse of his confidence, thus reposed, that arose most of the censure 
which, after the close of the war, was visited upon him, 

"Where he gave his friendship, he gave it unreservedly — whether friendship 
or confidence, he gave it unreservedly — and was slow to believe anything to 
the discredit of those of whom he was fond. 

"When he entered upon the Presidency he did so without much, if any, pre- 
vious experience in civil administration. He soon, however, very soon, made 
Tiimself thoroughly familiar with all the questions that were brought to his 
consideration, and he may truly be said to have applied himself to the great 
problems of government. 

" In his cabinet meetings his habit was to bring before his counselors such 
questions as might have been suggested to him, either by friends, or as the 
result of his own thought. He would generally ask of the members of his 
Cabinet, in order or successively, their views, and would then reach his own 
conclusion, and direct the course to be pursued which he thought best So far 
as my own department was concerned, he kept thoroughly up with all the 
questions that arose ; and, so far as I could judge, he was equally familiar 
with the questions in each of the other departments. 

" He was very free to accept the opinions and views of his cabinet, often 
antagonistic to his own preconceived notions. As an instance of this, when 
the inflation bill had passed Congress, and was strenuously urged upon him 
for approval by many of his most influential friends in each house of Con- 
gress, and by a majority of his Cabinet, he at first reluctantly yielded to a 
determination to approve the bill, and prepared a paper to be submitted to 
Congress, explaining his reasons for approval of the bill, which paper was 
laid before the Cabinet, but not read. I had most strenuously advocated his 
vetoing the bill, and an evening or two previous to this Cabinet meeting, he 
sent for me and read the paper. Having done it, he remarked : ' The more 
I have written upon this, the more I don't like it ; and 1 have determined to 
veto the bill, and am preparing a message accordingly.' At the Cabinet 
meeting he stated that he had prepared a paper assigning the reasons for ap- 
proving the bill, but had determined not to present it, and had written another 
message, vetoing the bill, which he then read to the Cabinet and subsequently 
sent to Congress. He had consulted his own good sense, and had given 
careful study by himself to this important question affecting the currency. 

" Another illustration of his readiness to yield a preconceived opinion is 
afforded by his action concerning the Treaty of Washington. After the be- 



TRIBUTES OF THE PRESS. 667 

ginning of negotiations about the treaty, it became necessary to determine 
upon commissioners on the part of the United States I felt it important that 
the commission should not be partisan, and that there should be at least one 
Democrat on it. The suggestion at first did not strike the President as im- 
portant, and it was opposed by many of his confidential friends • but on 
presenting the question fully and strongly to him, he abandoned his position 
and decided the question in favor of appointing Judge Nelson as one of the 
commissioners. Subsequently, when an arbitrator was to be appointed to the 
tribunal at Geneva, strong objections were urged from various quarters against 
the selection of Charles Francis Adams, which made an impression adve'^rse to 
him in the mind of General Grant— strongly adverse. But upon my urcriho- 
upon him that Mr. Adams was more familiar than anv other man with^the 
incidents attending the escape of the rebel cruisers, that' he had conducted the 
legation in London during the rebellion with admirable discretion and under a 
great deal of personal trial, and was entitled to recognition General Grant 
cordially yielded his opposition and over-ruled the objections of many close 
and confidential political advisers. 

'' So, too, was it in the appointment of IMr. Evarts as counsel. Some things 
had occurred at the close of Johnson's administration, while Mr. Evarts was 
Attorney-General, which left a strong feeling of irritation in General Grant • 
but, on the representation of Mr. Evarts' ability, and his fitness for the position' 
he yielded all personal feeling, and cordially agreed to his appointment. As 
a general rule, he asserted his own views tenaciously and firmly. 

"Until his election to the Presidency, I don't think he had taken much in- 
terest in party politics. He had been brought up— following the political views 
of his father— in sympathy with the old Whig Party. But, while^ in the army, 
he never voted until the election betn-een Fremont and Buchanan, when, from' 
want of confidence in General Fremont's civil capacity, and being then out of 
the army, he voted for Buchanan. And he often, jokingly, said to me, that 
his ' first attempt in politics had been a great failure.' 

" He was not indifferent to public criticism, but not unduly excited by it. I 
never knew him but once to be led into an action of the policy or expediency 
of which he had doubt by the criticism of the press or the pubhc. It was not 
a very important matter, relating only to the employment of a certain individ- 
ual in the conveyance of a message, whom a hostile journal had boastfully said 
should never again be thus employed. 

" I never met any one who formed, in advance, better estimates of elections 
that were about to take place than General Grant. On the evening preceding 
the Presidential election of 1872, I was sitting with him, and he gave the pro- 
bable result in each of the states. I noted it down, and found that it varied in 
each state almost inappreciably. 

" He was not a great reader. He wrote with fluency, tersely, stronL,dv, and 
with great rapidity. He was methodical in his habits and punctilious'in the 
discharge of whatever duties might be before him. 

" He had no historical models, but worked out his own course from his good 
sense and thoughtfulness. He formed his opinions, apparently, from intuition. 

" I think he was the most scrupulously truthful man I ever met. He had little 
idea of the value of money, and had no tendency to its accumulation. He 
was lavish in his expenditures and generous in his charities. He gave to all 
who asked of him, being often unnecessarily and unwisely profuse in his dona- 
tions, I have not infrequently known him to give sums from five to ten times 
the amount of what the appHcants could have reasonably or probably ex- 
pected. 

" In his family he was the fondest and most indulgent and liberal of hus- 
bands and fathers. 

" He had a large fund of humor, enjoyed a good story, and had the faculty 



668 . LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

of telling a good story, and of telling it well. I never heard him use a profane 
or an obscene word. 

" The habit of public speaking came to him after the end of his Presidency. 
While he was President, on one occasion, a large body of clergymen called 
upon, and made him a long address to which he had to reply, and which he 
always disliked to do. After a sentence or two I noticed that his voice faltered, 
and, fearing that he might be at a loss what next to say, standing next to him 
I caused a diversion by beginning to cough violently so as to interrupt his 
speech. He afterward told me how fortunate it was for him that i had 
that cough, as he had felt his knees begin to shake, and did not think he could 
have spoken another word. 

" His indignation was always intense against any case of marital infidelity ; 
and I have known an instance of his refusing consideration of applications in 
favor of an individual of high public position, who lay under such a charge. 
And once, where a man of much political influence, who had been thus guilty, 
recommended and was urging upon him some action, the General remarked, 
after his withdrawal : ' That man had better take care of his own moral con- 
duct than come and give advice to me on any question.' 

" He was strongly impressed with religious views, and was a firm believer in 
the fundamental principles of Christianity. He was brought up in connection 
with the Methodist Church, which he attended in Washington, On the Sun- 
day either succeeding or preceding — I don't remember which — his second 
election in 1872, he invited his Cabinet, in a body, to accompany him to the 
Metropolitan Church in Washington, which he was in the habit of attending, 
to listen to a sermon fi-om Dr. Newman appropriate to the occasion. The 
moral side of questions of a public nature, or otherwise, whether presented by 
his cabinet or friends, always had influence with him. 

" His memory was minute and accurate to a degree. He was not fond of 
talking of the war, or of his battles ; but, when he could be induced, or led 
to the subject, he would carry it through, giving the incidents of a fight, 
stating minutely, at the various stages of the engagement, the location of each 
division, or separate corps, or regiment. 

"I asked him once: "General, in case we should get into another war, 
how about our armies ?' 

"' Well,' he said, 'we have the best men in the world to lead them. No 
three men living are more capable of leading an army, or conducting a 
campaign than the men we have. There is a difference between fighting, and 
planning and conducting a campaign ; but there are no three men living 
better fitted to plan a campaign, and to lead armies than Sherman, Sheridan 
and Schofield.' 

" I said: ' But I hope we may have no war until these gentlemen may be 
too old to lead our armies. What then ? ' 

" ' There are young men coming up who will quite fill their places.' 

" ' Such as who ?' 

" He answered : 'Upton, McKenzie, Wilson ; and there are more.' 

"He said that during the batdes around Richmond he placed McKenzie 
in charge of the cavalry operating with Sheridan, and this assignment of 
command at once added fifty per cent, to the efficiency of that division of 
cavalry. 

" You ask, ' What position will General Grant take in the history of his 
country ?' I hope it will not be considered irreverent to say that Washington, 
Lincoln and Grant will be regarded as a political trinity — the one the founder, 
the second the liberator, and the third the saviour of the United States. It is 
admirably illustrated in that medallion in which they are represented as the 
pater, the lib':rator and the salvator. The work of each was necessary to the 
completion of the whole. 



CHAPTER XXV. 

TRIBUTE OF THE HON. EDWARDS PIERREPONT. 

Hon. Edwards Pierrepont, LL.D., D. C. L., Ex-United States 
Minister to England, gives the following personal recollections of 
General Grant : 

" I first met General Grant on his visit to Washington, after his 
victories in the Southwest, early in 1864. The Secretary of War, 
Mr. Stanton, with whom I was intimate, invited me to meet 
General Grant privately with himself, which I did. I had seen no 
picture of him, and had heard no description. 

" I was disappointed in his appearance, but struck by the firmness 
of his mouth, the fine build of his head, and the exceeding fineness 
of his hair. He had a thoughtful face and a kind blue eye. 

" For more than twenty years I have known him well, and under 
a great variety of circumstances. He was quite the most remark- 
able man that I ever knew. He was the hero, not of a chivalric 
age, nor of imperial splendor, but a hero of our age, and of our 
institutions, the natural product of a Government such as the world 
has never seen, whose possibilities are not yet imagined. 

*^ In 1867, while General Grant was living in Washington, I was 
employed by Mr. Seward, then Secretary of State, and xMr. Stans- 
bury, Attorney-General, to conduct the trial against John H. Surratt 
as an aider in the murder of President Lincoln ; and I then met 
General Grant daily for some six weeks ; and, during that long 
trial, he often sat by my side in the court room. He told me of an 
incident during the last days of the war which seemed to have 
left a deep impression upon his mind, and I related it to the 
jury, in General Grant's presence, in summing up the case, as 
follows : 

" ' On the 14th of April, 1865, Abraham Lincoln called together his Cabinet. 
We had at that time been receiving most cheering news ; but still upon his 
soul there lay a heavy gloom, and he remarked : " I am very anxious to hear 
from Sherman." The reply was : '' You will hear good news from Sherman ; 
there cannot be any doubt about that." General Grant was there, and he 
knew Sherman, and he took occasion to assure the President that the news 
from Sherman would be all right. " I don't know,'' replied Mr. Lincoln, and 
then repeated what he had iDefore said, " I am very anxious to hear from 
Sherman," adding the remark : "I feel some great disaster is coming upon us. 
Last night I was visited by a strange dream — the same dream that, in the 
darkness of the night, has three times before visited me; before the battle of 
Bull Run, before the battle of Stone River, and before the battle of Chancel- 

(669) 



6/0 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

lorsville it came to me, and the following day came the news of disaster. This 
same dream came to me last night in my sleep, and I feel as if some great 
calamity is to befall the nation, m which I am to be personally affected.'' In 
a few hours afterward — he did not hear from Sherman ; but the dreAxM came 
again and led his spirit up to God who gave it.' 

" Twelve years later, General Grant recalled this, as we were 
talking, late at night, in my library in London. I said : 

" * General, what did you think of that ? Was Mr. Lincoln 
superstitious ? ' 

" ' Yes,' he replied. ' I believe all great men are more or less 
superstitious ' ; and he said no more. 

" The same evening I was making many inquiries of him about 
the takingofVicksburg, which I had heard military men in London 
name as one of the greatest of military achievements. He said : 
'You know, about that time, they thought in Washington that I 
was too slow, and Mr. Lincoln said " he thought they had better 
try me a little longer." Before the mpvement on Vicksburg, I 
called a Council of War, and was advised not to make the move- 
ment ; the opinion was that it would be against all well-settled 
rules of war, because it would enable the enemy to cut off my base 
of supplies; but I knew that the Government at Washington would 
cut off my base of supplies anyhow, if I did not go ahead, and I 
gave the order.' 

" Intimate as I have been with him for so many years, I never 
once knew him to speak of his victories unless specially interro- 
gated, and no one would ever have supposed that he had been in 
battle from any remark of his. 

" I was a member of General Grant's Cabinet during the cele- 
brated whiskey trials, which so agitated the country, and about 
which so many falsehoods have been told, and in consequence of 
which so much abuse was heaped upon the General I necessarily, 
from my position there, knew all the facts ; and I have kept a care- 
ful record of them, and I shall give them to the world in detail. 
They are too long to be given in this communication ; but when 
they are given, no one will be disposed to blame General Grant. 
He acted throughout according to the best information which he 
possessed and with a determination to do justly, without regard to 
any public clamor. 

"Early in 1876 I was sent by the General as Minister to Eng- 
land. 

" In the following year his last term closed. He had then been 
in the public service some sixteen years, and was weary beyond 
expression. • 

" I received a long letter from him in London, written three 
weeks before his term ended, from which I quote : 

"i intend to visit you in London, when my term is ended here, which will be. 



TRIBUTE OF THE HON. EDWARDS PIERREPONT. 671 

three weeks longer, and it seems to me an eternity, so anxious am I to 
get away,* 

"On Thursday, the 31st of May, 1877, General and Mrs. Grant 
were my guests at 17 Cavendish Square, London. Twenty-four 
years earlier, then a young man, I met in London Mr. McLane, of 
Maryland, just now appointed Minister to France, and he told me 
that, the night before, he dined at Lord Clarendon's, where he met 
Lord Stanley, who was the eldest son of the Earl of Derby ; that, 
through his kindness, he was invited to dine at Lord Claren- 
don's, who was then in the Ministry ; that there he met Ex-Presi- 
dent Van Buren, who was visiting England ; that Mr. Van Buren 
was treated, not discourteously, but with utter neglect, and in a 
country where precedence was regarded of so great consequence; that 
Mr. Van Buren, an Ex-President of the United States, had no pre- 
cedence ; that in the ante-room, at the dinner table, in going in, and 
coming out he had none of that importance accorded to him which 
great statesmen and ex-rulers of other countries had carefully ac- 
corded to them ; that he spoke to Lord Stanley about it. Lord 
Stanley said : ' The difficulty is you give no title ; and, as you know, 
in England precedence is determined by title.' This gentleman 
was Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs when I was Minister to 
London, under the title of Lord Derby, having succeeded his 
father. 

'' The impression which a thing of this kind makes upon a young 
man when in a foreign country is not easily effaced. 

" About four weeks before General Grant arrived, I received a 
letter from him, stating his intended arrival; and all that Mr. 
McLane had told me came back as freshly as it would have done 
the day after he told it. With the letter in my hand, I went to 
Lord Derby, and told him of the proposed visit of General Grant, 
the ex-President of the United States, and that he would be my 
guest, and that I wanted to know how he was to be treated in p:ng- 
land. He replied, in his frank way : 'Oh ! we shall be very glad to see 
him in England. He is a very distinguished man.' I said : * Yes ; 
but that is not exactly what I mean. I want to know in what way 
he will be received, so far as relates to precedence.' 'Oh ! ' he said, 
' you care for nothing about those things in your country.' * No/ 
said I, 'but you do in yours.' 

*' He then said, after much more conversation upon the subject: 
' Now, exactly what do you want ? ' I said : I want the ex-President 
of the United States to be treated the same way that you treat ex- 
I rulers of any other country ; that the United States had more im- 
portant relations with England now, and was likely to have in the 
future, than any other country.' ' He said : 'Yes; now will you 
put in writing just what you want- and you know I will do any^ 



672 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

thing I can ; the difficulty is you give him no title in your 
country ; and hence the difficulty about placing him in our country. 
There is no precedent.' I said: 'I think there is. Louis Na- 
poleon was an ex-Emperor ; he was not a born king or emperor. 
He was elected. I want General Grant treated as ex-Emperor Louis 
Napoleon was treated.' He laughed, and said : ' That is pretty 
good logic. Now put in writing just what you want; and you talk 
to any of the ministers ; you know them well.' I did so, and have 
a copy of it. I saw him afterward, and he did everything that could 
be done to have General Grant treated with consideration, so as 
no ex-President had ever received before, and to accord him pre- 
cedence, such as would be accorded to an ex-ruler of any other 
country. 

'^ Trivial as it may seem to us, it was not a trivial matter there, 
and was not so regarded. 

" The Prince of Wales agreed in honor of General Grant, to 
dine in my house with a large distinguished company, which 
included all the ambassadors, the ministry, and many others of 
the great people of England. 

" The question arose where General Grant should be seated at 
the table, and it was matter of some negotiation. The point I 
made was that he should take the right of the Prince of Wales. 
The ambassadors thought that the oldest ambassador should take 
that place. It is too long to repeat v/hat was said, though I have 
it preserved in writing. General Grant did take the place sug- 
gested, and every ambassador was at the dinner, and nobody found 
any fault with it ; and General Grant, from that time onward, both 
in England and on the Continent, where he went, received such 
consideration as he so richly deserved. 

'' Before he arrived the Duke of Wellington had, on the 27th of 
May, sent me a note, wishing me to fix a day in which General 
and Mrs. Grant, with myself and Mrs. Pierrepont, would dine at 
Apsley House, his residence, adding in the note ' I know what you 
claim. Your ex-President shall have the pas of everybody ; he shall 
take in the Duchess.' He dined there, and did take in the Duch- 
ess. The Duke also said in that note that he 'thought it a very 
fitting thing that the greatest general in America should take his 
first dinner in London with the son of the greatest general in 
Europe.' 

" I should here say, that to the Prince of Wales, to Lord Derby, 
to the Prime Minister, Disraeli, as well as to all of the ministry, we 
were indebted for the cordial readiness with which they all aided in 
doing honors to General Grant. 

" On the 15th of June the freedom of the city was presented, at 
Guild Hall, at a grand banquet. Two days before the Lord Mayor 



I 






k 



TRIBUTE OF THE HON. EDWARDS PIERREPONT. 673 

sent me a letter, enclosing an engrossed copy of the speech which 
would be made to General Grant on that occasion, requesting me 
to read it to the General or give it to him, as I saw fit, in order that 
he might prepare his reply. It came while at breakfast. I opened 
it and told him what it was. He did not say anything. I said : 
' We will go into the library after breakfast and read it.' We went 
in ; he sat down, shut his mouth very tightly and said : ' Don't 
read it.' I said : * General, this is an occasion on which you cannot 
avoid saying something.' He said: ' I know it. But,' said he, * if 
you read it to me, or 1 read it, I shall get to thinking about it, and 
then I shall write down what I want to say, and then I shall try to 
commit it to memory, and when I get up to speak I shall find that 
I have not remembered it at all, and shall cave in and have to give 
it up. I must trust entirely to the spur of the moment, or I can't 
go through with it.' I have the speech now, and General Grant 
has never yet read it. He replied at much length, without any 
hesitation whatever, and made a speech which was happy and apt, 
without the slightest embarrassment; and it was considered by all 
as one of the finest speeches that had ever been made in that great 
hall. Those who have an idea that General Grant's speeches, or 
that General Grant's writings or messages or letters have been the 
work of other heads or hands than his own are entirely mistaken. 

" On the 23d of June the Prince of Wales invited General Grant 
and myself to a dinner at the Trinity House. Trinity is a corpora- 
tion of very ancient date ; its business is to have charge of the light- 
houses ; it is rich, and it is managed by the first men in the King- 
dom, and the Prince of Wales was President of it. 

"At this dinner the Prince of Wales made a speech, which was 
very happy and appropriate, as his speeches usually are, and in it 
he had a great deal to say about General Grant. Following him 
Lord Carnarvon, who was a member of the Ministry and of Trinity 
House, also made a speech, in which he spoke very kindly of 
General Grant and very pleasantly of our country • and General 
Grant was called upon to reply. He rose, he hesitated, he had great 
difficulty in going on ; he made some remarks about what the 
Prince of Wales had said, and undertook to say something in reply 
to Lord Carnarvon, and he ended in utter confusion, and took his 
seat. He came out after dinner and got into the carriage. 

" * Well,' said he, * I broke down ; didn't I ? " 

" * Well,' I said, ' you did not appear much as you did at the 
Guild Hall, and I don't know why, for you had not either of these 
speeches before you, and you did not have to write out and commit 
your remarks to memory.' 

" ' No,' said he. ' But the difficulty was that I had been listen- 
ing to the first speech, and had been fixing my mind to that, and 
43 



674 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

then the second speech came, and then I had to reply to them both 
together, which I undertook to do, and broke down.' 

" That is the only time that I ever heard him attempt to reply to 
two speeches at the same time, and the only time that I ever knew 
him fail to make a good speech, whether it were long or short ; and 
the reason that he gave was that he could not bring the two things 
together without confusing his mind. He added : 

'' * The speeches were both good, they pleased me very much, 
and I wanted to say a good thing to each, and, in attempting to do 
too much, I failed to do anything that suited me.' 

" General Grant was generally a silent man, a very silent man. 
In later years he got in the habit of talking with more facility and 
freedom than he did at first. 

** I never heard him, in all my long intercourse with him, use a 
profane word. I never heard him, either in an original story, or in 
repeating one, say anything that had in it the smallest measure of 
anything indelicate — that might not have been said before any lady. 

" He was never arrogant ; he was considerate of others ; but I 
don't think the opinions of others, when he had made up his own 
mind, influenced his action at all. 

" I think he was entirely self-reliant where he had examined the 
question before him. 

" He had strong feelings ; but he was not emotional. He wa^ 
delicate in his feelings ; but I think he could do firmly whatever ht 
thought necessary to do. 

" He was always lenient toward other people's faults or mistakes. 

" He was a good hater where he thought he had been wantonly 
injured or betrayed, and he did not hesitate to express dislike where 
he felt he had been wronged. And when he thought he had him- 
self been in the wrong, he was as ready to amend the wrong as any 
man that I ever knew. 

" He was not a great reader. His information came largely by 
absorption and observation. 

" He had a wonderfully retentive memory of faces and events. 

" He had a clear, concise, and pleasant style of writing, as his 
letters will show. He had considerable humor ; but I never saw any 
indication of what is called wit. 

" He had a greater power of restraining his feelings, whether of 
indignation or pleasure, than any man I ever knew. 

" He was never cold-hearted. 

" His whole life proves, and the last days before his death con- 
firm, what indomitable firmness he had. 

" On that first occasion when I met him in Washington, after his 
great successes in the Southwest, in the parlor of Willard's Hotel, 
there was quite a number of people calling to pay their respects^ 



TRIBUTE OF THE HON. EDWARDS PIERREPONT. 675 

and among them a clergyman, who, in very earnest words, was say- 
ing to him that the weight of responsibility upon him must be ter- 
rible, so many lives were dependent upon him, so much depended 
on his success, with the remark that it was enough to crush any one, 
when such great responsibilities were laid upon him. The General 
stood quite stolid when he listened to it, and made no reply, and the 
clergyman repeated it over with great earnestness and a slight 
variation, and then the General said : ' Well, I don't feel the same 
weight of responsibility which you seem to think is upon me. I try to 
do the best I can, and leave the results to a Higher Power, feeling 
no more responsibility.' 

^' In England his visit naturally excited a great deal of comment, 
upon his administration, upon his character, upon his military 
achievements, and, somewhat, while there, but largely after he left, 
men talked to me very freely about him. He left an admirable im- 
pression. He was placed in a new situation, a situation calculated 
to embarrass almost any man. Of course he knew that whatever he 
did or said, or did not do, would be noted. 

** I never heard a criticism from anybody upon his demeanor in 
social life; but all spoke of his manly bearing, of his self-poise, of 
his wonderful good sense in every situation. 

" His military achievements were spoken of very highly, and it 
was repeatedly said by military men that the taking of Vicksburg 
was equal in its genius and its results to any victory that Napoleon 
ever achieved. 

" In June the General and I dined at a house of a member of 
Parliament, where there were no ladies present, and in the course of 
the dinner the subject of religion was introduced, and I think it was 
the only time I ever heard that subject introduced at a dinner-table 
in England. 

" There was one man at the table who treated the subject with 
considerable mockery, and General Grant shut his mouth and 
would not enter into any further conversation, and he scarcely said 
anything during the remainder of the dinner. When we came 
away he said, after we got into the carriage : * The conversation of 
that man so shocked me that I could not talk any more, and I did 
not enjoy the dinner.' The next day after this dinner we got to 
talkipg: about the subject of religion, and he said that it always 
shocked him to hear people speak lightly of it, that he was brought 
up religiously, that he had never questioned any of the general 
doctrines, and that it did not make any difference to him whether 
they seemed logical or not. He said that, although he could not 
undertake to reconcile all things in revelation with the discoveries 
in science, the scientific discoveries had not, in the smallest measure, 
shaken his faith in immortality nor in the great principles of religion. 



6^(y LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

He was, beyond all doubt, a firm believer in religion, and had great 
respect for all its ordinances ; and I know that he never took part 
in or listened to, with any complacency, any ridicule of sacred 
things. 

" The Duke of Cambridge is a royal Duke. He is the comman- 
der of the forces of England. He was very courteous to General 
Grant, and expressed himself to me in high admiration of his great 
military ability. 

"On the 26th of June he had accepted an invitation to dine at my 
house, in honor of General Grant ; and a large number of military 
men, as well as others, had been invited at the same time, and it 
was supposed that the dinner would be one of exceeding interest, in 
consequence of the class of men that were to meet General Grant on 
that occasion. There were twenty-eight of the number. But, ac- 
cording to their peculiar laws of etiquette in England, the dinner 
never came off ; for the reason that the Queen, three days before 
the dinner, sent us an invitation to come to Windsor Castle to dine 
and to stay over night, and that, by their rules, made it necessary 
to recall all the cards of invitation, although the chief guest was a 
royal duke. The result was that the dinner so carefully arranged 
could not take place, and we went to Windsor Castle, and dined 
with the Queen and her Court, and stayed all night, returning at 
noon of the next day. 

" There General Grant was placed in a new situation, as the eti- 
quette at a dinner at the Queen's is a little different from that of any 
other. He knew how to demean himself there, as well as in every 
other place, and I cannot better say what I wish to say upon his 
general bearing than I subsequently said in these words : 

' I have seen him where Sovereigns and Princes, Emperors and Ambassa- 
dors, rose up to do him reverence, calm, self-poised, unruffled as a Sphinx. 
He is wiser than when he went away, of broader intelligence, loftier in tone, 
more exalted in his moral nature. But he will come home the same single- 
minded unpretending, brave and honest man, a fitting product of our noble 
institutions.' 

" And all this he has since proved. 

"Disraeli, when I first went to England, was Prime Minister, and 
during my stay he was elevated to the peerage, under the title of 
Lord Beaconsfield. Before he became Lord Beaconsfield he was 
in the House of Commons. When he became Lord Beaconsfield, 
he passed to the House of Lords ; but in both places he was Prime 
Minister. 

" Mr. Gladstone was an ex-Prime Minister, and, while they were 
both in the House of Commons, they were, of course, on different 
sides in politics, and the debates in which they both took part were 
always immensely interesting. 

*• I met Lord Beaconsfield very often at dinners, and he was at 



TRIBUTE OF THE HON. EDWARDS PIERREPONT. 677 

the dinner given to General Grant at my house. He had much 
curiosity, as he told me, to meet General Grant, and he talked with 
him, and he called upon him at my house. 

" Disraeli was a very peculiar man. He said that he had wcitched 
the War in the States with great interest ; that he had taken sides, 
from the first, with the North, particularly from his intellectual view 
of the question, being thoroughly persuaded, from studying the 
subject that the North would succeed; and he had. therefore, 
watched the progress of the War with unusual interest ; and that, as 
General Grant had proved to be the hero of the War, he had been 
curious to meet him to see what kind of a man he was. And he 
said : * He is just the kind of a man that he ought to be with such 
a record.' And that is the only criticism that he made. 

'* Mr. Gladstone took breakfast at my house one morning, and it 
lasted very late. I was interested to learn about England and 
English politics, and he is the best and most interesting talker that 
I ever met. Touch him upon any subject connected with England, 
and he will continue upon it, giving you the most interesting infor- 
mation, until you turn his attention to some other subject. 

" In the course of that long conversation he spoke about our 
War, and with great admiration of the part that General Grant 
played in the victory of the North, and of his great magnanimity 
when he became conqueror. 

" Mr. Gladstone and Disraeli were violent rivals ; but when Lord 
Beaconsfield died, the finest eulogy that was pronounced upon him 
was delivered by Mr. Gladstone, about which, and the inspiration 
of which, Mr. Gladstone wrote me in an autograph letter, which I 
now have, and which some day I may think fit to make public. 

" General Grant took great interest in politics, and his predictions 
about the results of the elections in the different states from the very 
beginning of his administration were far more accurate than those 
of any man that I ever heard talk upon politics. 

" I think the great features of his mental and moral character were 
his self-poise, calm judgment and wonderful common sense. He 
would hardly be said to be a man of brilliant genius; but his 
achievements in war are considered to be of the highest order ; and 
he commanded a larger army than ever Napoleon commanded, and 
led his armies to success. 

He was more largely intuitive than people generally supposed. I 
do not think he was much inspired by reading, either upon war or 
matters of state; but his wonderfully calm judgment added to his 
intuitive forces and his deep devotion to the principles of popular 
government, always guided him aright. 

"He was tenacious in his friendships, as in everything else, and 
was slow to think ill of any one in whom he had confided. He was 



6yS LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

disposed to be forgiving of others' errors and mistakes, but his con- 
fidence, once shattered upon good grounds, was never restored. 
His early life was one of great privation, which strengthened him 
for his great work ; but when he came to the possession of power 
and large means, he enjoyed both. He had respect for wealth, and 
enjoyed the luxuries which it brought — not in the gratification of 
the appetite — he always ate very sparingly, and of kw things ; but 
he loved, in his silent way, a banquet graced by fine women in costly 
dress and jeweled beauty, and adorned with a profusion of beau- 
tiful flowers. The scene was pleasing to his eye, and ministered 
to his imagination. 

" His death was as remarkable and characteristic as his battles. 
He hardly knew when he was beaten ; but when he realized that 
the battle was over, he calmly surrendered to the will of the Heav- 
enly Father. When the American Republic shall have become the 
grandest Empire upon the earth, the history which General Grant 
made during the first century of its rise, will be written by many 
historians, and Grant will be mentioned as a hero of imperishable 
renown." 



CHAPTER XXVI. 

INCIDENTS AFTER DEATH. 

Funeral Arrangements-Quiet Days at Mt. McGregor-A Letter from President Qere. 
land to Mrs. Grant-Riverside Park, near New York, selected as the Resting-PIace 
of General Grant— A Chat with Dr. Douglas and Rev. Dr. Newman-The Site 
of the Mausoleum — Monuments to be Erected. 

The question where the remains of General Grant should be 
interred gave rise to an animated discussion. New York and 
Washmgton were the cities contending for the honor Very 
earnestly were the claims of each city pressed. It is understood 
that at first the family were inclined to select Washin^rton the 
national capital, and the city where General Grant passed'^some of 
the most illustrious years of his earthly career, but as Mrs. Grant 
intended to make New York her home, she naturally desired that 
her visits to the tomb of her husband should be frequent and she 
therefore decided in favor of New York. Soon after the announce- 
ment of the death of General Grant, Mayor Grace, of New York 
sent the following despatch to Mrs. Grant : * 

■rr r. ^ Mayof's Office, New York, Tuly 2^ 1881; 

Mrs. U. S. Grant, Mt. McGregor, N. Y. :-In advance of official action 
1 am instructed to tender to yourself and family the deep sympathy of the 
Common Council, and of the municipal authorities of the city of New York 
m your sad bereavement. I am also authorized by informal action of the 
authorities, which will be made official to-morrow, to tender to you a last resting^- 
place for the remains of General Grant in any one of the parks of this city 
which you may select. I am also authorized to offer the Governor's Room at 
the City Hall, for the purpose of allowing the body to lie in state. 

T 1 .1 r ,1 . W. R. Grace, Mayor. 

In reply the following was received : 

u TX7 -D ^ .. ^^- McGregor, N. Y., July 23, 1885. 

Hon. Wm. R. Grace, Mayor of New York :— Thanks. Can you send 
some one to confer with me ? p_ D. Grant 

At a special meeting of the Board of /.Idermen of New York, 
the following preamble and resolutions, after Aldermen O'Dwyeri 
Hartman, Morgan and Van Rensselaer had made feeling addresses 
upon the character and services of the dead hero, were unanimously 
adopted : 

^' The sad intelligence of the death of General U. S. Grant having been 
officially communicated by His Honor the Mayor to this Common Council it 
becomes our sorrowful duty, in behalf of this metropolis, to give expression'to 
the profound grief of our citizens upon their irreparable loss. 

" ^? enumerate the services to his country rendered by the illustrious de- 
ceased, and the honors received by him at the hands of his grateful fellow- 

(679) 



68o LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

citizens, to extol his virtues, to delineate his character and to recite the history 
of his brilliant career as a warrior and civilian, would be simply supererogatory. 
The fame of his achievements as a soldier and a statesman is world-wide. He 
was known, admired and honored, not only by the people of this Repubhc, 
but by the people of every country and clime. 

" The death of General U. S. Grant is a national calamity. This Council, 
as the representatives of the people of this city, are called upon to take such 
measures as will tend to show the estimation in which the deceased was held 
by his fellow-citizens, and to participate with them in paying a proper tribute 
of respect to his memory. Be it, therefore, 

" Resolved, That as an expression of sorrow, and out of respect to the 
memory of General U. S. Grant, our citizens are hereby recommended to close 
their respective places of business and refrain from any secular employment 
on the day to be set apart for solemnizing the funeral rites. 

" Resolved, That the members of the Common Council attend the funeral in 
a body with their staves of office draped in mourning, and that His Honor, the 
Mavor, as chief executive, the chief officers of the several executive depart- 
ments of the city government, the judges of the several courts held in the 
city, the members of the National Guard and our citizens in general, be and 
they are hereby respectfully invited to unite and co-operate with the Common 
Council in the ceremonies incident to the sad occasion ; that the flags on the 
City Hall and the other public buildings be displayed at half staff from sunrise 
until sunset on the same day, and the owners and masters of vessels in the 
harbor, and the owners and occupants of private buildings in this city, be and 
are hereby requested to display their flags in like manner at the same time. 

""Resolved, That the heartfelt sympathy of the Common Council be and the 
same is hereby tendered to the family of the lamented deceased in their 
bereavement. 

" Resolved, That the proper authorities be and they are hereby authorized 
and requested to offer a sepulture for the body of General Grant in any of the 
public parks of the city of New York which the family of the deceased may select. 

" R 'Solved, That the City Hall and other public buildings be draped, and that 
the Governor's Room in the City Hall be placed at the disposal of the family 
of the deceased, should it meet their approval, draped appropriately, for the 
reception of his remains, in order that our citizens may have an opportunity to 
look for the last time upon the loved features of the Republic's greatest soldier. 

" Resolved, That a special committee of five members of the Board be ap- 
pointed to perfect the funeral arrangements, and to take such other action as 
they may deem proper to manifest our sorrow for the death and reverence for 
the memory of the illustrious deceased. 

" Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions, suitably engrossed, be forwarded 
to the bereaved family." 

The question of a burial-place remained in an unsettled condition 
until four o'clock in the afternoon, when the following telegram from 
Mayor Grace caused Mrs. Grant and her children to decide at once, 
and finally to accept the proposal of the city of New York : 

"Your two telegrams just to hand, and I understand the matter to be now 
definitely settled that General Grant's body is to be interred here. We cannot 
take any more definite action in regard to the matter of Mrs. Grant until a later 
date. The faith of the President of the Board of Aldermen and my own is 
pledged that we will s^e, when a little time is passed away, that the wishes of 
the family are gratified by formal resolution of the Board. Answer immediately 
so I may appoint committee to make my quota for grand national monument. 

"W. R. Grace." 



INCIDENTS AFTER DEATH. 68 1 

Upon the receipt of Mayor Grace's telegram, Mr. Turner, who 
was sent to Mt McGregor as a special messenger by Mayor 
Grace, repaired at once to the cottage, where a conference was held 
with Colonel Fred. Grant. The Colonel read the Mayor's despatch 
and retained it. At the close of the conference Colonel Grant as- 
sured the Mayor's representative that he and the family thus for- 
mally accepted the tender of a burial-place for General Grant and 
Mrs. Grant in Central Park, in the City of New York, and that he 
and the family would now proceed with all the funeral arrangements 
with reference to the above conclusion. The Mayor's messenger 
then telegraphed to Mayor Grace the result of his mission. 

The embalming was begun a few hours after death. The cheeks 
and face, by the process made use of, were made to assume a ful- 
ness, the deeper furrows and lines were filled out and the expres- 
sion of the face was one of peace and rest. 

President Cleveland sent Adjutant-General Drum asa special mes- 
senger to deliver the following letter to Mrs. Grant : 

" Executive Mansion, ) 
UAT T^ AT 1 ^, "Washington, Julv 23, 1885. ) 

My Dear Madam : Obeying the dictates of my personal feelings and in 
accord with what I am sure is the universal sentiment of his fellow-country- 
men toward your late husband, I am sohcitous that every tribute of respect 
and affection should be duly rendered, and with constant consideration of 
your personal wishes on the subject, Adjutant-General Richard C. Drum is 
charged with the delivery of this note, and will receive and convey to me 
any intimation of the wishes of yourself and children, in respect to the selec- 
tion of the place of burial, the conduct of the funeral ceremonies and the 
part which may be borne by those charged with the administration of the c-ov- 
ernment. With sincere condolence, your friend and servant, 

"Grover Cleveland." 

The 26th of July being a Sabbath, Rev. Dr. Newman, the friend 
of the dead hero, was asked to conduct the morning services, but 
the reverend gentleman gravely declined. Since General Grant's 
death he had been unable to speak of his dead friend without emo- 
tion, and to have stood where he did two weeks ago to deliver his 
discourse on " The Value of Character," while General Grant was 
alive down at the cottage, seemed well-nigh impossible to Dr. New- 
man, so the day was one of quietness, with some visitors and 
some permanent arrivals. General Horace Porter and the Japanese 
Minister Kuki arrived during the day. 

During a conversation Dr. Douglas was asked by a correspon- 
dent how he happened to bring General Grant to such a secluded 
part of the world as Mt. McGregor. 

Well," said he, as he stroked his venerable beard and crossed 
his sturdy legs, " I was born not far from here, and knowing that 
this pure, dry, balsam-laden air was good for all physical ailments. 



682 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

and seeing that the sea air was particularly bad for General Grant's 

throat, I suggested this." 

" Was General Grant a long time a patient of yours ? " 
" No. It chanced that some years ago I treated one of Dr. Bar- 
ker's cancer patients very successfully, and when General Grant ap- 
plied to him he, fearing or suspecting cancer, sent him to me. He 
came to my office, and after I examined him, noticing a tell-tale 
look on my face, he asked if I suspected cancer. I did, and was 
much alarmed, but evaded a direct reply. I subsequently met his 
son and Dr. Barker, and told them that I had no doubt. For a 
while he was very ill, then he grew better, and again there was a 
marked increase in the cancerous progress. 

" I took some of the tissues from the throat and examined them 
microscopically. I had them photographed, published and sent to 
the entire medical profession, after which there was no question. 
Recovery was at no time possible. All we could do was to prolong 
his life, secure his comfort and keep the difficulty from increasing as 
much as possible. No caustics were at any time applied. Had 
there been, as I told the family, there would have been a horrid 
condition of affairs — a terrific stench with intense pain and much 
fetid odor. As it was, we had none of these, or at least to no ex- 
tent. It was suggested that possibly there was some other cause 
for General Grant's trouble. This was investigated at an early 
stage, and, in order that we might not be caught napping in any di- 
rection, we adopted a course of treatment which would have helped 
him had he had that trouble, and could do no harm to him if he had 
simple cancer. His critics talked about his having a malignant 
ulcer. That, of course, meant but one thing. We carefully and la- 
boriously followed his life step by step. We were assured that 
this man, sixty-three years old, had during his married life of 
nearly forty years been as faithful to his marriage vow as to anything 
else he undertook. His children grew to full maturity and were 
well and strong. He himself gave no evidence of weakness any- 
where, and so after three trials of this special treatment, it was aban- 
doned." 

" We see and read a great deal of General Grant's religious talk 
and life. Do you think he was really a religious or simply a com- 
mon-sense man ?" 

" Grant was deeply religious. He was not a man of forms and 
ceremonies, as well we all know. Neither did he obtrude his 
opinions on anybody ; but he was profoundly religious." 

"Was he a prayerful man, except when Dr. Newman was around 
and suggested exercise in that direction?" 

" I can't say that he was ; but of that I can't speak knowingly." 

** There is a great deal of talk in New York and Saratoga, and 



INCIDENTS AFTER DEATH. 683 

on the cars, as to the right of the Common Council to swerve 
Central Park from its original design, and particularly as to giving 
Mrs. Grant a promise that her body may be buried there. What 
do you think of it?" 

" I don't think the Central Park idea a good one. There could 
be a magnificent monument there, of course. I have thought it 
would be well to bury the General at the base of the statue of 
Liberty on Bedloe's Island; but, after all, the place is the Soldiers' 
Home, in Washington. It is the natural place and already well 
named the Soldier's Home, and Grant was the Soldier." 

" In view of the fact that you long since literally gave up your 
business in New York, that you have devoted yourself, your time, 
your constant service, your personal devotion day and night to the 
General and his interest, it is a very natural question to ask if you 
are treated fairly in the pecuniary line?" 

" W^ell, I can truthfully say I haven't given the matter a thought. 
I have presented no bill and shall not. I have received some 
money from the family, but I have made no demand for any, and 
have no thought about the future." 

Soon after the correspondent's chat with Dr. Douglas, Dr. New- 
man came along. Being asked, in respect of Grant's religious 
feeling, whether he had any sentiment about it, or simply recognized 
the existence of a God, the reverend gentleman hesitated for a 
moment, and then, with the understanding that certain parts of the 
conversation would be treated confidentially, said : — 

"It was the General's wish that I should officiate at the final cere- 
monies of interment. Beyond the wish and expressed desire that 
his wife should be buried by his side he had no preferences I 
shall so officiate, and then shall give to the world what it can get in 
no other way, a full, complete, absolute proof of General Grant's 
Christian character. Much that passed he wrote with his own 
hand, and those writings I have, of course, carefully preserved. 
Other parts were spoken, and those were put down in my journal 
when I returned to my room. I propose to treat in my funeral dis- 
course of the character of the man, leaving to others his treatment 
as a soldier and statesman. 

" He was a Christian if there ever was one. No profane word 
ever passed his lips and he was intolerant of profanity in those 
about him." 

When Dr. Newman accepted the call to the Congregational 
Church, corner of Madison Avenue and Forty-fifth Street, at New 
York, General Grant attended services there. Previous to that the 
General had been a member of the Central Methodist Church, in 
Seventh Avenue, near Fourteenth Street, of which Dr. Newman was 



684 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

pastor. After Dr. Newman resigned from the Madison Avenue 
Church and went to Cahfornia, General Grant was without a church 
home. The Rev. Dr. James S. Chadwick at that time was the 
pastor of the Central Methodist Church. In the name of the 
trustees of the church, he presented to General Grant the family 
pew formerly occupied by the General. General Grant accepted 
it, but his illness prevented his ever attending services in the 
church again. The pew still remains in his name. 

Dr. Chadwick's pastorate of the Central Methodist Church ex- 
pired last spring, and, according to the practice of the Methodist 
Church, in changing its clergymen about every three years, he 
was transferred to the Methodist Church in Forty-third Street, 
near Eighth Avenue. From 1876 to 1879 Dr. Chadwick was as- 
signed to a church in Covington, Ky. Among the members of his 
congregation were General Grant's parents, Jesse R. Grant and his 
wife. Jesse Grant died at Covington. His wife died in New Jersey 
last y^ar. Dr. Chadwick preached the sermon at Jesse Grant's 
funeral and also spoke at the funeral of General Grant's mother. 
He knew all the Grant family. 

One of the memorial sermons was preached by Dr. Chadwick, 
on the evening of the 26th of July. The reverend gentleman said 
he would like to have preached it in the Central Methodist Church, 
because it was there General Grant went during nearly all his 
residence in this city. The little church in West Forty-third Street 
was very neatly draped. The rear of the pulpit was hung with 
dark cambric and in the centre was an oil portrait of General 
Grant, regarded as one of the best of the early pictures of him, and 
presented to Dr. Chadwick and family by General Grant's mother. 
It is, of course, very highly esteemed by them. Its borders were 
hung with a fringe of black and white paper. Beneath the portrait 
the letters "U. S. G.," in paper fringe, were suspended. On either 
side were small flags with black borders. Over the pulpit was 
thrown a large flag with drapery of mourning. The whole pre- 
sented a simple, but tasteful and appropriate, tribute to the memory 
of the Genera). Dr. Chadwick's sermon, which is given elsewhere, 
was delivered with a great deal of feeling. General Grant's sisters, 
Mrs. Corbin and Mrs. Cramer, who arrived from Europe the other 
day, are also members of the Methodist Church. 

On the 27th of July, Colonel Fred Grant and his brother, Jesse 
Grant, went to New York for the purpose of conferring with 
Mayor Grace upon the arrangements for their father's funeral. The 
Mayor did not arrive at his office until half an hour later, and the 
visitors were shown into his private room. In the mean time 
General Perry arrived at the City Hall to represent General Han- 
cock in making the arrangement for the obsequies. After the 



INCIDENTS AFTER DEATH. 685 

Mayor's arrival the parties were closeted together for some 

f 1 n^f=^ 



time. 



Colonel Grant, Mayor Grace and President Sanger, of the Board 
of Aldermen, drove to Central Park during the afternoon for the 
purpose of selecting a burial site. They went to Watch Hill, near 
the old fort, and inspected a location there. The view froni this 
point is extensive. To the east many cottages on Long Island are 
visible, and to the west Jersey City is in sight. Colonel Grant ex- 
pressed the opinion that the spot was not of sufficient size, for 
should the national monument be erected there, it would be dwarfed 
by its surroundings. 

Mayor Grace, who favored the Riverside Park for the site, then 
suggested a drive to that ground. The northern end of the 'park, 
opposite Fort Lee, was the spot preferred by the Mayor. This part 
was unfinished. The roads were incomplete, and the garden spots 
had yet to be laid out. The Mayor argued that the park could be 
built up so as to make the portion of it where the tomb will be the 
central point of interest, not only from the consideration of who 
rests there, but in scene and adornments. The party seemed to 
consider the spot desirable for the final resting-place of the dead 
hero ; but afterwards examined other places. Colonel Grant left 
for Mt. McGregor in the evening. Before leaving he said he 
must submit the subject of the burial-place to his mother before a 
decision could be reached. 

The day broke brightly on the mountain and passed without 
event until ten o'clock on the morning of the 28th day of July, 
when the train arrived at the summit of Mt. McGregor. Colo- 
nel Fred. Grant was one of the passengers upon it. He proceeded 
at once and alone upon his arrival to the cottage, his brother Jesse 
having remained behind. The Colonel immediately repaired to 
his mother's apartment, where the family gathered to hear the 
result of ihe Colonel's trip to and conference in New York. He 
detailed his movements and explained that there seemed to be 
reasons for the choice of a burial spot in some other than Central 
Park Riverside Park had at the time of General Grant's death 
been suggested as the spot of interment, and it seemed best to 
the Colonel, after seeing and hearing all, to change the place of 
sepulture to Riverside Park. The matter having ^been thus pre- 
sented to the family, a conclusion was reached in accordance with the 
Colonel's suggestions, and he at once dictated the following dispatches . 

__- _ _ Mt. McGrej^^or, July 28. 

W. R. Grace.— Mother takes Riverside. Temporary tomb had better be 
at the same place. F. D. Grant. 

Mt. McGregor, July 28. 
General R. McFeely, Washington, D. C.— Mother to-dav accepted Riverside 
Park. She wishes me to thank you for the tender of the Soldiers' Home. 

F. D. Grant. 



686 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

At the meeting of the Board of Aldermen of the city of New- 
York on July 28th, President Sanger announced that a dispatch 
had been received from Colonel Grant that morning announcing 
that the family had agreed to the General being interred in Riverside 
Park. The following resolutions were then adopted by the board : 

Whereas, The family of General U. S. Grant have accepted the offer of 
the corporation of the city of New York, for sepulture in one of the pubhc 
parks of the city and have selected a site in Riverside Park for that purpose ; 
be it therefore . 

Resolved, That the right of sepulture in said Riverside Park, be and is 
hereby given to General U. S. Grant and his wife upon her demise ; and be it 
further 

Resolved, That a proper deed of cession for the purpose designated be 
prepared by the counsel to the corporation when the exact locality and 
dimensions of the ground are fixed and the said deed be duly executed by the 
city authorities. 

Riverside Park, where the remains of General Grant are to 
repose, is a narrow and irregular strip of land lying between River- 
side Avenue and the Hudson River, from Seventy-second Street to 
One Hundred and Thirtieth Street. Between the western limits 
and the river, however, passes the road-bed of the Hudson River 
Railway. The general width of the park is about five hundred 
feet, while its entire length is some three miles, the area being about 
one hundred and seventy-eight acres, only a portion of which has 
been laid out in walks and drives, while the rest still retains the 
wild picturesqueness of nature. 

The surroundings of this park are so lovely that it is believed it 
will ultimately become the most aristocratic residence region of 
New York. The ground rises to a bold bluff above the Hudson 
River and the views from the river drive-way are very charming, 
giving glimpses of the undulating, tree-covered park, the shining 
stretches of the river dimpled into innumerable wavelets and the 
Weehawken heights opposite. The drives of Riverside begin at 
Seventy-second Street and extend three miles to One Hundred and 
Twenty-ninth Street. There are several of these drives curving 
gracefully along the bank of the Hudson, in some places three 
hundred feet above the water. The bank slopes gradually to the 
shore and the intervening space between the drives and the river is 
filled with groves of tall trees. 

In the letter that Mayor Grace sent to Colonel Grant suggesting 
Riverside Park as the best place for the General's tomb, the writer 
made the following points in favor of that site : 

" Because of the peculiar beauty of the place in its location on the river and 
the fact that a monument in it would be visible far and wide. It would give 
a distinct characteristic to this quiet and beautiful park and such a monument 
as would probably be erected there would vie in beauty and fitness of location 
with the famous statue of German ia on the Rhine. The entire park would 
become peculiarly, in a sense that Central Park never can become, sacred and 



INCIDENTS AFTER DEATH. 68/ 

devoted to the memory of your father. The Park is so young that the 
character of its development would be largely determined and its whole future 
dominated by this fact. The monument would be visible from two States and 
for miles, both up and down the Hudson River, and would not only borrow 
from but lend beauty to the noble stream, and at no time could your father's 
remains be regarded as lying remote from nature. In the heart of a great busy 
city, in the rush and hurry of the life of which death and its sacredness may 
be forgotten, the remains of even the great dead may be passed in thought- 
lessness." 

Architect Mold, of the Department of Public Parks, had com- 
pleted the plan for the temporary vault which was to contain the 
body of General Grant until the erection of a permanent tomb. It 
is made entirely of brick. Within it measures 12 by 7 feet. It is 
four feet under ground and is surmounted by a barrel arch, with two 
rims of brick. In front rises a cross. A large iron door gives 
access to the plain cemented interior. On each side are four cross- 
shaped openings for ventilation. The front faces the river. 

The question of the resting-place of the remains of General Grant 
being decided, Governor Hill, of New York, issued the following 
invitation : 

" State of New York, Executive Chamber, ) 
Albany, July 27, 1885. j 

" To the Me^nbers of the Legislature : 

"The remains of General Grant will arrive in Albany on Tuesday, August 
4 next, at four o'clock P. M., and lie in state at the Capitol until the next day 
at noon, when they will be taken to New York to await the burial, which is to 
occur in that city on the following Saturday. 

" It is suggested as eminently appropriate that the Legislature should infor- 
mally assemble at the Capitol on Tuesday, August 4 next, at four P. M., at the 
reception of the remains, and participate in the exercises on that occasion, and, 
if deemed desirable, to take such action during that event as may suitably 
express the sentiments of our Slate in regard to the distinguished dead, and 
afterwards to accompany the remains to New York and attend the funeral in 
a body, 

" The members of the Legislature who approve of this suggestion will please 
be present at the time named. " David B. Hill." 

The President of the United States, Grover Cleveland, put Gene- 
ral Winfield Scott Hancock in charge of the ceremonies connected 
with the funeral of General Grant, and accordingly that officer 
issued the following order : 

•• Headquarters Division of the Atlantic, ) 

Governor's Island, New York City, July 29, 1885. j 
"I. Having been placed bv the President in charge of the ceremonies con- 
nected with the funeral of ex-'President of the United States General Ulysses S. 
Grant, and in command of the escort for the obsequies, I hereby give notice 
that military and civic organizations and associations intending to partici- 
pate will, upon properly reporting such intention, be assigned positions in the 
procession, which will take place in the city of New York on Saturday, August 
8 i88c 

' " II. Major-General John C. Farnsworth, Adjutant-General of New York, 
is announced as aide, and will act as chief marshal of the obsequies of Gene- 



688 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

ral Grant at Albany, New York, in due concert with the civil authorities, and 
he is charged with all details of the ceremonies and care of the remains at that 
place as the representative of the Major-General commanding, during his 
absence, and until his arrival, and is also charged with the preparation of 
orders to meet all contingencies there between the reception and departure of 
the remains. 

" 111. Brigadier-General Lloyd Aspinwall, late of the State National Guard, 
is announced as aide to the Major-General commanding in chief during the 
obsequies of General Grant in the city of New York, and is entrusted to estab- 
lish an office in that city, the place of which he will announce, and is charged 
Avith the preparation of the routes of march for the funeral procession from the 
City Hall to the place of interment, and as to final dispersing, as a basis of 
orders for these purposes. 

" IV. Brevet Major-General Martin T. McMahon, late United States Volun- 
teers, Marshal of the United States for the Southern District of New York, is 
announced as aide, and is charged with the conduct of the march of the civic 
organizations in column as a body, and for the due dispersion after the cere- 
monies are concluded. He will establish an office in New York and announce 
the same. All such organizations desiring to take part will report directly to 
these headquarters, sending a duplica'e of same to General McMahon, and 
will state title of same, name of chief officer and the number to paiade. 

" WiNFiELD S. Hancock, Major- General^ 

The sad news of the death of General Grant filled the heart of 
every American citizen with sorrow ; from all parts of the globe 
came expressions of sympathy ; at every gathering resolutions of 
condolence were offered and unanimously adopted. His old com- 
rades, the Posts of the Grand Army of the Republic and other 
veterans of the Mexican and Civil Wars expressed their grief and 
offered their services as guards of the body at Mt. McGregor, or 
as participants in the funeral procession. The first elaborate floral 
piece was sent to Mt. McGregor by the Meade Post, No. i, G. 
A. R. , of Philadelphia. It was in the form of a pillow of imn.or- 
telles and was five by three feet. It stood at an easy angle upon 
a wire frame. Gilman, the mountain artist, photographed it when 
it was unboxed at the depot. The ground of the pillow w^as white, 
the entire piece being fringed with feathery grasses. In the centre 
was a sword, the blade of which was yellow and the hilt and guard 
red, with purple along the edge, which gave an effect of relief from 
the ground. Lying across the blade was an exact reproduction in 
colors of the shoulder-strap belonging to the rank held by General 
Grant. There were four white stars on a blue ground upon the 
strap, while its edges v/ere gold and purple. On either side of the 
sword were sprays of ripened wheat and tufts of feathery grasses 
bound with white satin ribbons. The inscription, which was in pur- 
ple immortelles on the white ground above and below the sword 
and shoulder-strap, read thus: "Comrade U. S. Grant, Meade 
Post, No. I, G. A. R., Philadelphia." General Grant had become a 
member of this post shortly before his departure for the old world. 

General Burdett, the Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of 



INCIDENTS AFTER DEATH. 689 

the Republic, addressed the following letter to Ex-President R. B. 
Hayes, relative to the latter's proposition regarding a national mon- 
ument to the late General Grant: 

"Headquarters Grand Army of the Republic, 
Washington, July 25, 1885. 

Hon. R. B. Hayes, Fremoftt, Ohio : 

"Dear Sir and Comrade — I have just read your letter to General R. B. 
Buckland and others, recommending that the G, A. R. lead in raising a fund 
by general subscription for the erection of a national monument to General 
Grant. I beg to suggest that the national monument to be erected to the 
memory of our departed comrade will be of such proportions and cost as to be 
beyond the proper line of private contribution. His fellow-citizens will demand 
that it be paid for out of their — the national — treasury. For the credit of the 
nation the lesson of the Washington monument in that regard ought not to go 
unheeded. 

" Movements initiated in cities and States together in funds or quotas of funds 
will result in their local application to give proper expression to local feeling. 
The Grand Army of the Republic may of right claim the honor of erecting its 
own monument to its leader and comrade. I believe it will do so. It should 
be the work of the individual comrades — Posts, departments and national 
headquarters acting as agencies only for gathering and caring for the contri- 
butions. 

"Following out the Grand Army principle of 'equality in fraternity,' the 
sum to be given might be restricted to an equal amount for each. Ten cents 
per capita from our 300,000 comrades would produce $30,000. Why not 
provide for the erection of a statue, to be chiseled by the most skillful hand 
attainable, that shall tell the story of the last heroic conflict as well as of his 
greatest days? "S. S. Burdett, Cojninander-in- Chiefs 

In the mean time movements were set on foot at New York, 
Philadelphia, Chicago, Cincinnati and other cities and towns to 
immediately raise funds with which to pay for monuments of Gen- 
eral Grant. 

Shortly after death, and before the body had been surrendered to 
the embaimer, a plaster cast of the face had been made by a young 
sculptor named Karl Gebhardt. On the afternoon of the 29th of 
July, it was found that the hardening process that results from 
embalming had begun, and the embalmers expressed the belief, 
established by precedent, that the body would remain in its present 
condition without change for at least six months. Harrison was 
permitted to aid in the final preparation of the body as far as 
possible. A suit of black broadcloth was placed upon the remains, 
the coat being a Prince Albert. A white linen standing collar 
circled the neck, and a black silk scarf was tied in a plain bow at the 
throat. Harrison also adjusted a pair of low-cut patent-leather 
slippers on the dead General's feet, when they had been incased in 
white stockings. Gold studs were fixed in the shirt-front, and plain 
^-old buttons in the cuffs. When the remains had been finally 
dttired and placed within the casket, the double-breasted coat was 
buttoned closely from top to bottom. The right hand was laid 
44 



690 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

across the breast, and the left hand was disposed in an easy posi- 
tion by the side. 

Colonel Fred Grant at this point entered the apartment He 
approached the casket where it rested beneath the black-draped 
canopy, and, leaning above it some moments, studied the face of 
his father in silence. Then, taking in his own the right hand of 
the General, Colonel Grant placed upon the third finger a plain 
gold ring, and then replaced upon the breast the still, thin hand. 
Before turning away, the Colonel drew forth a small packet of 
mementoes and placed them in the breast-pocket of the coat. 
Having performed these last direct personal offices. Colonel Grant 
retired, and those in charge dropped the heavy plate-glass top of 
the casket in place, and the casket was sealed by the turning down 
of sixty screws that press the glass down into its fitting, which 
thus renders the casket air-tight. And so that evening the Gen- 
eral's remains laid covered with an American flag. An incandes- 
cent lamp shed a mellow light about the heavy canopy, and the 
flag-covered casket beneath was in shadow and rest until the day 
of removal. In the room and beside it the men of U. S. Grant 
Post were on watch ; the members of Wheeler Post had their vigil 
upon the veranda, and outside were the "regulars," who tirelessly 
tramped the beaten paths over the pine needles under the trees 
about the cottage. 

The casket was what is called the "state style," and was a cloth- 
covered, metallic casket. It was the finest ever made and was the 
first one of its kind manufactured. It was six feet long, and the red 
cedar shell was covered with the finest purple silk velvet. The frame 
had heavy solid silver mountings and portals. The inside metal was 
highly-polished copper and the casket opened full length, the top 
being of fine French beveled plate glass. The inside trimmings 
were of light cream heavy satin, tufted, and with an elegant pillow 
of the same material, upon which were handsomely embroidered the 
initials " U. S. G." The handles were of solid silver, made especially 
from models and dies manufactured solely for them. The outside 
box was red cedar, heavily lined with lead. The outside was finely 
finished, with the corners and tops tastily mounted with silver 
ornaments and was practically indestructible. The casket was per- 
fectly air-tight and weighed three hundred pounds. 

A steel case enveloped the cedar casket. It is oval in shape, air, 
water and burglar- proof, and was secured by rivets. There was a 
door on the end for the reception of the casket, which could resist 
all attacks. It was eight feet long, three feet six inches high and 
thirty-five inches wide, and was painted with a water-proof paint. 

President Cleveland, at the request of Mrs. Grant, named the 
following gentlemen as pall-bearers for General Grant's funeral: 



INCIDENTS AFTER DEATH. 69 1 

General William T. Sherman, U. S. A.; Lieutenant-General Philip 
H. Sheridan, U. S. A.; Admiral David D. Porter, U. S. N.; Vice- 
Admiral Stephen C. Rowan, U. S. N. ; General Joseph E. Johnston, 
of Virginia; General Simon B. Buckner. of Kentucky; Hamilton 
Fish,of New York; George S. Boutwell, of Massachusetts; George 
W. Childs, of Pennsylvania; John A. Logan, of Illinois; George 
Jones, of New York; Oliver Hoyt, of New York. 

The President and the members of the Cabinet decided that they 
would attend the funeral ceremonies, and the following invitation 
to ex-members of his father's Cabinet was issued by Colonel Fred. 
Grant: 

"Mount McGregor, N. Y., yz^y 31. 

"The undersigned respectfully invites all ex-members of his father's Cabinet 
to attend the obsequies, to be held on the 8th proximo, in New York. Gentle- 
men accepting this invitation are respectfully requested to advise General 
Hancock of their intention to be present, who will assign them appropriate 
places in the procession, "Fred. Grant." 



CHAPTER XXVII. 

FINAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE FUNERAL. 

The Arrangements for the Funeral — No Visitors admitted to see the Body — The Work- 
of the Embalmers — Disrespectful Conduct of Relic Hunters — A Letter from Simon 
Cameron to Colonel Grant — A Tribute from the Governors of Arkansas, New Jer- 
sey and from the Society of the Cincinnati — The Family's Farewell — Private 
Services over General Grant's Remains — Sympathy from Confederate Soldiers — 
Dr. Douglas' Tribute to the Dead. 

Saturday, the first day of August, was a day of disappointment 
On Wednesday the remains of General Grant were exposed to the 
view of the guests of the hotel and their friends, and on the fol- 
lowing two days nearly all who presented themselves were ad- 
mitted ; and many hundreds availed themselves of the privilege. 
On Friday evening Mrs. Grant gave orders that the face of the 
General should not be exposed to public view until Monday morning. 
This order was literally obeyed ; even the former private secretary of 
General Grant, Mr. Sniffen and the wife of Rev. Dr. Newman were 
not allowed to do anything more than inspect the parlor in which 
the remains were laid. On Friday night there was a thorough 
inspection of the face at the suggestion of the undertaker, and 
Colonel Grant expressed himself entirely satisfied with the em- 
balmer's work. The leaden hue about General Grant's face was 
owing largely, the undertaker said, to the unfavorable lights and 
shadows of the room in which the body lay. 

The real reason for Mrs. Grant's order were the reports of in- 
decorous conduct of some persons who were admitted to view the re- 
mains, and to whom nothing was too sacred, and, apparently, nothing 
too common, if it has the remotest connection with the life and 
death of General Grant, to prevent him from putting his hands 
upon and carryings it away by stealth. The colonnade in front of 
the cottage is composed of silver birch, and the marks of knives 
used for cutting away the bark are to be seen on every pole. On 
Saturday it was discovered that a piece of the lightning rod, that 
was placed on the cottage, had been carried off, and to this fact is 
traceable the very severe shock of lightning the cottage received 
on Thursday evening, and which, it is surprising, did not lead to 
more serious consequences. Even the drapery of the observation 
car which is to receive the remains had been cut in several places, 
although a military guard was placed over it. 

Dr Douglas has sustained what to him is an irreparable loss, 
(692) 



FINAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE FUNERAL. 693 

and it is indirectly attributable to this inordinate desire for relics. 
He is the possessor of many of the leaves of the pads on which 
General Grant wrote his pencil talks. In looking over his collec- 
tions recently he has found out that some one has discovered a 
way into the side pocket of his coat and has stolen several of the 
more valuable of these interesting documents. 

Among the many letters and telegrams ' received by Colonel 
Fred Grant was the following from Simon Cameron : 

Donegal Farm, Lancaster County, Pa, 

To Colonel Fred D. Grant, Mt. McGregor, N. Y.— I am glad to know that 
Generals Johnston, Buckner and Gordon are going to act as pall bearers with 
Sherman and Sheridan. Your father's prayer for peace to his country has 
been answered, and the last bitterness of the war wiped out forever. 

Simon Cameron. 

A laurel wreath came on Saturday from Miss Schellman, of 
Westminster, Md. An ebony penholder with a pen attached to 
it by a white ribbon, from which a card depends upon which is 
written " Let us have peace," '* And to him is granted rest and 
peace eternal" Opposite upon the wreath is fastened a small 
golden sword and near this a card bearing these words : 
" The sword and cross are both laid down, 
Our hero wears the victor's crown." 

Colonel and Mrs. Grant on Saturday entered the parlor together. 
The bodyguard at once withdrew, and the two were alone with the 
remains for nearly half an hour. Mrs. Grant is employed a por- 
tion of her time in draping what all through his long illness was 
called " the General's easy chair." It is the huge leather-covered 
chair in which he rested and slept. It was brought with him when 
he came to Mt. McGregor and will be jealously treasured by the 
family. 

Governor Abbett, of New Jersey, issued the following proclama- 
tion : 

General Ulysses S. Grant died on the morning of the 23d day of July. A 
nation mourns the loss of an illustrious soldier, whose history is written in 
the hearts of the people. Gratitude and affection will rear a monument, the 
grandeur of which will be a fitting tribute to the hero who lies beneath, but 
his eternal monument will be the Union of States preserved through his genius 
and the bravery of his comrades. The most glorious tribute paid to his 
memory will be the love and sorrow of fifty millions of freemen. When the 
dust of ages shall cover with forgetfulness the name and history of his brave 
comrades^ there will still stand in the march of the centuries, clear and bright, 
the name'and fame of U. S. Grant, the victorious leader of the Union armies. 

On behalf of the people of this State I deemed it proper immediately upon 
his demise to drape the public buildings in mourning, order our flags at half- 
mast and telegraph to his family the profound sorrow and sympathy of our 
people. I have waited until the time and place of his funeral were determined 
upon and the arrangements therefore so far perfected as to enable me to 
take further action. All the regiments and battalions of the National (^uard 
of the State have expressed their desire to parade in the funeral procession. 



694 ^^^^ ^^ ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

The Grand Army of the RepubUc in this State, under its department com- 
mander, will form part of the mighty array of mourners that will follow the 
remains of the hero to his grave. 

The Governor and staff, the State officers and a committee of the Senate 
and General Assembly will accompany the remains to their final resting 
place. I deem it proper to set apart the day of the funeral for services in 
honor of the deceased. In taking this action I give expression to the wishes 
of all of the citizens of the State. 

Therefore I, Leon Abbett, Governor of New Jersey, do hereby direct that on 
Saturday, the 8th day of August, all public buildings shall be closed and 
draped m mourning, and I earnestly request all our citizens to desist from all 
worldly employment and devote the day to appropriate religious services and 
such other demonstrations of sorrow and respect as are fitting to the occasion 
and to the memory of the illustrious dead. 

Given under my hand and privy seal at Trenton, August i, 1885. 

Leon Abbett, Governor. 

Governor Cameron, of Virginia, issued the following proclama- 
tion : 

" Whereas, By the death of General U. S. Grant, the country is called 
upon to mourn the loss of an illustrious citizen, whose deeds have made him 
famous throughout the world, and whose generosity in a memorable crisis of 
the fortunes of this State has left an indelible impression on the hearts of our 
people, and as it is becoming that, in common with our fellow-citizens of the 
Repubhc, Virginians should mark their sense of the National loss, and pay 
their tribute of respect to the memory of the ex-President and great commander 
of the United States armies ; therefore it is ordered 

" That, on Saturday next, the 8th instant, the day appointed for the funeral 
of General U. S. Grant, all public offices of the State be closed ; that the flags 
of the capitol be displayed at half-mast, and that, from sunrise to sunset, guns 
be fired every half hour from the Capitol Square. Citizens throughout the 
Commonwealth are requested to observe the solemn occasion by religious ser- 
vices or other appropiiate ceremonies." 

Governor Stockley, of Delaware, issued the following proclama- 
tion : 

" In recognition of the universal sorrow at the death of General Ulysses S. 
Grant, I recommend our citizens to cease from ordinary business pursuits on 
Saturday, August 8th, and unite in testifying their respect for the emment ser- 
vices rendered by the illustrious soldier and citizen, and direct that the National 
flag be displayed from the capitol at half-mast." 

The following telegraphic correspondence passed between Fitz 
Hugh Lee and General Hancock : 

Governor's Island, N. Y., August 2. 

General Fitzhugh Lee, Alexandria, Va. -.—Would it be agreeable to you to be 
appointed an aide on the occasion of the ceremonies in connection with the 
obsequies of General Grant ? If it would you will be so announced. Please 
reply by telegraph. W. S. Hancock, Major-General." 

Alexandria, Va., August 3. 
General W. S. Hancock, Mt. McGregor, N. Y. :— Your telegram received. 
I accept the position, because by so doing I can testify my respect for the 
memory of a great soldier, and thus return, as far as I can, the generous feel- 
ings he has expressed towards the soldiers of the South. Fitzhugh Lee. 



FINAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE FUNERAL. 695 

At a meeting of the Tammany Society, the following resolution 
was adopted : 

" The soldier of our age has fallen. The Tammany Society, or Columbian 
Order of the city of New York, in common with the rest of his countrymen 
mourn his loss. Therefore, ' 

" Resolved, That in the death of Ulysses S. Grant the Union has sustained 
the loss of a sincere and devoted friend, whose life was constantly exposed for 
years in his labors to preserve its integrity, and whose magnanimity and kind- 
ness to those who opposed him on battle-fields did much to assuage the bitter- 
ness remaining after a stoutly contested civil war. From Appomattox dates 
the end of sectionalism. Thenceforward heahng from sectional wounds has 
gradually obhterated the marked divisions between the North and South, and 
no man did so much to bring about the result as Ulysses S. Grant, the soldier 
and President. To-day the Unionists and the Confederates are united in the 
universal sorrow which all citizens feel at his death, and join hands over his 
bier in one sacred pledge of devotion to the principles and the Union to which 
his life was earnestly devoted," 

Governor Hughes, of Arkansas, on Saturday, issued the following 
proclamation : 

" The death of General Grant, the brave soldier, the great civihan and un- 
pretentious citizen, has caused universal sorrow at home and abroad. Those 
who followed the flag of the Union in the contest in which his fame as a soldier 
was won and those who were the recipients of the liberal and magnanimous 
terms granted by him at Appomattox will cherish his memory and mingle their 
tears over his bier. His memory is dear to all classes of his countrymen. 

" Through respect to his memory, and in consideration of the universal sor- 
row at his demise, it is hereby ordered that all offices of the several departments 
of the State government be closed on Saturday, August 8, from half-past ten 
o'clock A, M., and that the flag upon the Capitol be displayed at half-mast. 
And it is recommended that citizens generally suspend business and attend the 
funeral services and ceremonies on that day. S. P. Hughes, Governor." 

General Grant was an honored member of the Society of the 
Cincinnati, having been elected to membership about twenty years 
ago. By his death the privileges of membership, which are 
hereditary, descend upon the eldest son, Colonel Fred. Grant, if he 
chooses to accept them. The following circular letter was received 
by Secretary General Major Asa Bird Gardner, of New York, with 
instructions to forward a copy to each of the State societies, viz : — 
Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, Pennsylvania, New 
Jersey, Maryland and South Carolina : 

"No official notice is needed to inform the Society of the Cincinnati of the 
loss they have sustained in the death of their distinguished fellow-member, 
General U. S. Grant. Words cannot add to the world-wide appreciation of the 
greatness of the character of our dear associate. 

" The Society of the Cincinnati, having a national grief, will ever cherish 
the name and memory of the great soldier and statesman. 

" Members will wear the usual badge of mourning. 

" Hamilton Fish, President General." 

The badge of mourning of the society is crape worn upon the 
left arm for thirty days. On the occasion of the obsequies on the 



696 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

8th, the order was represented by an official delegation from the 
New York society. At the head of the column was borne a banner 
presented to the society in 1786 by Baron Steuben, its president at 
that time. A feature of the society is the extremely long terms of 
office to which members are elected. Hamilton Fish has officiated 
as president general since 1856. Major Gardner, the sixth secre- 
tary general in the course of the past one hundred years, was 
elected in May, 1884. 

The interesting event of Sunday at Mt. McGregor has been a 
family service of prayer at the Grant cottage. This was the last 
Sunday that the family would be together with the remains of the 
General, and Mrs. Grant desired it should be taken advantage of 
and solemnized in this way. Through the coming week the nation 
will demand the privilege of carrying the dead. When Dr. Newman 
came Mrs. Grant asked him to be with the family while they gath- 
ered in the cottage parlor to say their farewell. Thus it was that 
about two o'clock Mrs. Grant and her daughter and three sons and 
their wives were in the room with the dead. Dr. Newman and 
wife came as well, and lastly entered little Julia, the General's 
granddaughter, the child of Colonel Grant. 

The family surrounded the catafalque, beneath which was the 
calm, peaceful face of the General. Mrs. Grant from a table 
brought her dead husband's Bible, which she opened and passed 
to Mrs. Newman, who handed it to Dr. Newman. When the 
minister had adjusted his glasses he found that the book was 
opened at the eleventh chapter of Job. The chapter was read and 
then the clergyman re-read with tender emphasis the sixteenth to 
the nineteenth verses: 

Because thou shalt forget thy misery, and remember it as waters that pass 
away. 

And thine age shall be clearer than the noonday: thou shalt shine forth, 
thou shalt be as the morning. 

And thou shalt be secure, because there is hope; yea, thou shalt dig about 
thee, and thou shalt take thy rest in safety. 

Also thou shalt lie down, and none shall make thee afraid; yea, many shall 
make suit unto thee. 

There was a slight pause, and then Dr. Newman bowed for 
prayer and each one present knelt down, and the silent member of 
the group, who lay in the shadow, was thus surrounded. The little 
girl of eight years seemed to appreciate the moment and also knelt 
silently beside her father and mother. Then the guards having 
withdrawn to the grove beyond hearing, a prayer of gratitude v/as 
offered up — gratitude for the beautiful character of the silent one 
and the influence it should exert upon all lives. There were in the 
prayer solemn vows to follow the example of the General in all his 
virtuous ways, and the supplication closed with an appeal for divine 



FINAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE FUNERAL. 697 

assistance and an expression of hope of a reunion. After this the 
entire family, there alone with their pastor, entered with him into a 
religious conversation, and then each and all dwelt upon reminis- 
cences recalled of the General's last sickness. And so, after an 
hour, the little group arose and the last Sabbath service of the 
family with their dead was at an end. 

Outside the cottage there was a great contrast to the quietness 
that prevailed within. All the railroad trains had been heavily 
laden with visitors from Saratoga and its neighborhood and from 
more distant places. The day was perfect as far as weather was 
concerned — sunny, but pleasantly cool; so cool, indeed, in the 
latter part of the afternoon as to render necessary the lighting of a 
log fire in the vestibule of the hotel. 

There was another examination of the body on Sunday by the 
embalmers in the presence of Dr. Douglas, and it was unanimously 
conceded that the discoloration that presented itself a few days ago 
on the features is increasing rather than diminishing. 

At an impressive meeting of Confederate officers and soldiers 
held at San Francisco, on the 2d day of August, to take action on 
General Grant's death, the following nine Southern States were 
represented: — Virginia, Missouri, Maryland, Georgia, Louisiana, 
Mississippi, Kentucky, North Carolina and Tennessee. Major C. 
D. Wheat, of Virginia, chairman of the meeting, expressed the 
sense of the meeting in the following words. He said they had 
assembled to do honor to a gallant soldier and patriot in the 
brightest sense of the terms. General Grant had been their enemy, 
their crushing foe, it was true, but in the hours of his victory he 
had proved himself their best friend and most generous benefactor. 
Hating him once, they now remembered him with gratitude, and in 
this hour of national sorrow came together as citizens of a united 
country to honor the dead hero of their dear and common mother- 
land. 

To-day Dr. Douglas wrote his first letter since General Grant's 
death. In it there is such a touching tribute to General Grant that I 
have begged it from the doctor for publication. This letter con- 
tains a more eloquent tribute to the character of Grant than will be 
found in the more elaborate and pretentious eulogies. It reads: 

"Mt. McGregor, Hotel Balmoral, N. Y., 
August 2, 1885. 
"My dear sister: This is the first day I have felt able to write for a long time. 
1 have had a long and trying time, and was on the edge of an abrupt break 
when the death of my patient ended my vigils. It is three full months since I 
had a continuous night's sleep. My head was dizzy and my step very falter- 
ing. My work is ended and I have now only to follow to the grave the man I 
loved and for whorh I have devoted my life these many months. I could not 
cure him, but I could by close and continuous care alleviate his sufferings and 



698 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

possibly prolong his life. That I think I have done. I am contented. I go 
from here on Tuesday with all that remains of my patient and my friend, and 
expect to keep close to him until he is deposited in his tomb. Nine months of 
close attention to him have only endeared him to me. I have learned to know 
him as few only can know him. The world can know him as a great general, 
as a successful pohtician, but I know him as a patient, self-sacrificing, gentle, 
quiet, uncomplaining sufferer, looking death calmly in the face and counting 
almost the hours he had to live, and those hours were studied by him that he 
might contribute something of benefit to some other fellow-sufferer. If he 
was great in his life he was even greater in his death. Not a murmur, not a 
moan, nor a sigh, from first to last. He died as he had lived, a true man. My 
heart and thoughts are too full to write more now. Affectionately, your 
brother. "John." 

Informal visits of condolence were paid the Grant family this 
afternoon by ex-Postmaster-General Creswell and wife and ex- 
Assistant Sectetary of the Interior Gorham. The embalmers have 
been busily engaged with the body during the entire evening. 
They will use coloring substances if necessary in order to have the 
face present a good appearance. Dr. Douglas says the countenance 
looks better than ever. He believes the glass lid causes the dark 
reflection on the features. He states that the embalming could not 
have been improved. 



I 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 

REV. DR. NEWMAN'S ELOQUENT SERMON., 
Simple but Impressive Service at Mount McGregor — Sermon of Rev. Dr. Newman, 

General Hancock and his staff on Monday proceeded to Mt. 
McGregor, to take charge of the obsequies. He arrived there on a 
special train from Saratoga at 11.45. Before leaving the train, he 
issued instructions that no salute should be fired in his honor by 
the artillery stationed there. 

The General marched at the head of his staff up the slope to the 
cottage. At the foot of the balcony he was met by Colonel Fred. 
Grant, with his hat off The General took off his hat in return 
and entered the cottage. Half an hour later the doors were thrown 
open to the general public. 

With the exception of the military feature, General Grant's 
funeral at Mt. McGregor was such as might have been the 
funeral of any leading citizen of a country town. 

The cannon began to boom at sunrise, and the guns were fired at 
intervals during the morning. 

The door leading into the room where General Grant's body was 
lying was left open. From it came the odor of freshly gathered 
flowers. A great bowl of purple, red, pink and white pond lilies, 
the gift of Mrs. James Arkell, with the various floral offerings of 
Senator Stanford and several Grand Army Posts stood out against 
the background of the deeply shaded room. Just at the left of the 
door outside was a little stand covered with a silk star-spangled 
banner trimmed with black. Upon this flag rested a Bible. In 
front of the cottage the two companies of infantry and artillery 
were stationed. 

The blue and white uniforms of the infantry stood out in the 
shadows of the trees, while the red and blue uniforms of the artil- 
lery were picked out by the sun, making blazing patches of color 
against the background of green behind them. Upon the porch, 
at the right of the preacher's desk, was a group of brilliantly-uni- 
formed artillery officers. 

Three or four artillery sergeants, with swords drawn, cleared an 
open space in front of the orator's desk, and then stood still, as so 
many wooden men, during the hour and twenty-five minutes occu- 
pied by the discourse. 

Just before ten o'clock a group of Grand Army men, numbering 

(699) 



700 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT, 

ten, the representatives of the Brooklyn Post, headed a Httle pro- 
cession from the hotel. They were in full uniform, and walked up 
the porch w^ith heads uncovered. Behind them came Dr. Newman, 
leaning upon the arm of Bishop Harris. Behind them came Dr. 
Douglas and the Rev. Mr. Agnew. These four last-named gen- 
tlemen wore great white sashes, caught with black and white 
rosettes upon their right shoulders. They took seats at the right 
of the speaker's stand. At precisely ten o'clock the services be- 
gan. The members of the Grant family did not make their 
appearance, but remained in the room where the dead General was 
lying. After the funeral service they retired to the private rooms 
of the house and were only seen wdien it was time for the train to 
depart. The Rev. Dr. Agnew, a tall, spare man, with high fore- 
head and partly bald, opened the exercises by reading clearly and 
distinctly the ninetieth Psalm. The reading was occasionally in- 
terrupted by the booming of the cannon. Then there was a 
prayer by Bishop Harris, of the Methodist Episcopal Church, of 
New York. At the close he repeated the Lord's Prayer, the 
audience joining with him. 

Mr. Camp, the well-known choir leader, came to the front hold- 
ing a roll of music in his black-gloved hand, and nervously 
beckoned to a group of ladies who were in front. They were the 
soprani, Miss Whitney, of Boston ; Miss F'annie Ropes, of Brooklyn, 
and Miss Callader, of Brooklyn ; contralti, Mrs. Dr. Douglas and 
Mrs. Chapman ; tenor, J. R. Whitney ; bass, Hermann Busch. 
They took their positions about Mr. Camp and sang the hymn, 
" My Faith Looks up to Thee." A number of the country members 
of the audience joined in the singing. The music sounded well 
in the open air. A fresh breeze was then beginning to blow so 
that the music was heard distinctily at the station, nearly three 
hundred feet away. 

After this Dr. Newman arose to begin his discourse. He was 
dressed in a close-fitting frock suit of dark cloth, with a huge 
white tie tied in a wide bow under his double smooth-shaven 
chin. He held a mass of manuscript in his hands as he explained 
the object of his discourse. He told in a word what he was going to 
say, and then he began to read from his manuscript. Dr New- 
man's discourse was a pleasant surprise to many, as it con- 
tained many interesting things, for he was able to give for the 
first time a number of new writings of General Grant. Dr. New- 
man's recital of the farewell to Mrs. Grant, found in the General's 
pocket after his death and written secretly two weeks before that 
event, was a most interesting part of the discourse. 

Dr. Newman preached from the text : 

" Well done, thou good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of thy 
Lord," — Matthew xxv. 21. 



DR. NEWMAN S SERMON. 7OI 

" Some comrade in arms," he said, " shall speak of the splendor 
of his martial genius ; some statesman shall review the majesty of 
his civil administration ; some historian shall place him on the ped- 
estal of his renown, but let me, as the minister of religion, dwell 
upon that great character which will ever be his crown of glory and 
the imperishable heritage of the country he loved so well. 

'' You have seen him in the fury of battle, in the glory of victory, 
in the chair of state ; you have seen him the guest of the world, 
honored by crowned heads and sceptred hands, by renowned war- 
riors and eminent statesmen, by foremost scholars and adoring peo- 
ples; you have seen him in the quiet of private life, undistinguished 
from his fellow-men other than by those virtues which made him 
conspicuous and by that fame which came from honorable deeds ; 
you have seen him in the sorrow of misfortune, such as has often 
come to the best and wisest financiers in the world ; you have seen 
him in the suffering of the sick room through nine weary months, 
enduring the indescribable tortures of a malignant disease and that 
without a murmur ; and to day you see him in the repose of death 
in the undisturbed sleep of the just. And could you rend the veil 
that obscures our mortal vision, you would see him in his better 
form of immortality, with all his mighty faculties in full play, un- 
changed in his individuality, the same calm, earnest, sincere soul, 
purified and exalted and intent on the realities of his better life. 

*' Shall we inquire why the land is filled with lamentation from 
the savannas of the South to the snow-capped hills of the North, 
and from where the Atlantic moans along its ancient coast to where 
the Pacific sobs on its golden shore ; why poets lament, orators de- 
plore, editors deprecate and ministers turn to the Unseen for conso- 
lation ; why kingdoms and empires, and republics stand with our 
great nation as chief mourners around this bier? 

" Who is dead ? Oh ! ye sobbing winds of Mt. McGregor 
that fanned his brow, tell it not. Whisper it not, ye mountain pines 
that shaded his form. And keep ye silent, Oh ! ye summer skies 
of love and beauty that smiled upon him. 

" And what were the elements of that character, so unique, 
symmetrical and now immortal ? God had endowed him with an 
extraordinary intellect. For forty years he was hidden in com- 
parative obscurity, giving no indications of his wondrous capacity; 
but in those four decades he was maturing, and at the appointed 
time God lifted the veil of obscurity, called upon him to save a 
nation and give a new direction to the civilization of the world. 
How calm his judgment, how clean and quick and accurate his 
imagination, how vast and tenacious his memory! Reason was 
his dominant faculty. He was a natural logician. He could de- 
scend to the smallest details and rise to the highest generalizations. 



702 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



His wonderful understanding was like the tent in story ; fold it 
and it was a toy in the hand of a child, spread it and the mighty 
armies of a republic could repose in its shade. He could comprehend 
a continent with greater ease than others could master an island. 
Under his vast and comprehensive plans a continent shook with 
the tramp of advancing armies. As out of some immense mental 
reservoir there came a fertility of resources displayed in a hundred 
battles, in the greatest emergencies and in a threefold campaign 
carried forward at the same time without confusion, and each the 
part of one stupendous whole. The grandest campaigns are often 
defeats, the most brilliant plans are unconsummated, the most 
wished-for opportunities are unrealized, because baffled by the 
unexpected at the very moment of expected fulfillment. But he 
appeared greatest in the presence of the unforeseen. Then came 
an inspiration as resistless as the march of a whirlwind, as when 
on the second night of the battle of the Wilderness, when he 
changed the entire front of the line of battle, and quietly said in 
response to a messenger, ' If Lee is in my rear, I am in his.' This 
man, pre-eminent by the happy combination of both nature and 
Providence, rose superior in the supreme moment, forced all 
things to do his bidding, and, like another Joshua, could have 
commanded sun and moon to stand still to illuminate his final path 
to victory. He imparted to all his own spirit and all things be- 
came possible to his faith. The nation felt her mighty change, 
and the rebellion went down beneath the power of one master 
mind. He was the logician of war. He conquered by logic. He 
reasoned out his victories. In all the annals of war there is no 
such splendid reasoning on the certainty of results. Others have 
conquered by the superiority of material force, but he by the supe- 
riority of mind over mind. Alas ! alas ! that he can no longer 
think for us. 

"From this better nature and higher mission as a warrior sprang 
his conduct toward the vanquished. He had no hatred in his heart. 
His heart was as tender as a woman's. He was not vindictive. 
His holy evangel to the nation was : ' Let us have peace.' Hence, 
toward the close of the war, those who had fought against him saw 
that there was no safety but in the arms of their conqueror. In his 
dying chamber he grasped the hand of him whose sword was the 
first he had won, and said : * I have witnessed since my sickness 
just what I wished to see ever since the war, harmony and good 
feeling between the sections.' On Holy Easter he sent forth this 
tender message : * I desire the good will of all, whether hitherto 
my friends or not.' His was the song of the angels : ' On earth 
peace, good will toward men.' 

" This has been the softening ministry of his sufferings to his 



DR. Newman's sermon. 703 

countrymen. God permitted him to see this glorious consumma- 
tion. Our sorrow is national in the broadest sense. And to-day, 
where the magnolia blooms and the palmetto grows, the ' men in 
gray ' weep as over the death of their best friend. And had he 
lived to see a foreign foe invade our shores North and South would 
have chosen him to lead us to defend our liberty. 

'* The time will come when men everywhere will recognize the 
greatness and beneficence of his administration as President of the 
United States. When the memories of party strife shall have been 
forgotten ; when the disappointed aspirations for office shall have 
ceased to fester ; when the rivals for place and power are no more : 
then, as comes the sun from the mist of the morning, so shall his 
administration appear in greatest splendor. Great and beneficent as 
were his measures of reconstruction, amendments to the constitu- 
tion, of finance, of the improvement of the laboring classes, of the 
just treatment of the Indians, of the elevation of the freedmen, of 
the promotion of education, and of the concessions he compelled 
foreign powers to make, yet, in the interest of universal peace, in 
the ultimate recognition of the brotherhood of nations, in the ad- 
vancement of Christian civilization in all the earth, the Treaty of 
Washington will be esteemed of immeasurable grandeur and be- 
neficence, not to be estimated by millions of dollars, but by the pos- 
sibility and prophecy that all international disputes maybe adjusted 
by peaceful arbitration, when nations shall learn war no more. Such 
was his dream of the future, expressed to the International Arbitra- 
tion Union in Birmingham, England, when he said : ' Nothing would 
afford me greater happiness than to know, as I believe will be the 
case, that at some future day the nations of the earth will agree 
upon some sort of congress which shall take cognizance of inter- 
national questions of difficulty, and whose decisions will be as bind- 
ing as the decision of our Supreme Court is binding upon us.' 

"And whether in camp or Cabinet, in private or public, at home or 
abroad, how pure and commendable his moral character ! Life in 
the camp has proved ruinous to the morals of the greatest of war- 
riors. The excitement of a life devoted to arms, the scenes of ex- 
cess and plunder to which a soldier is exposed, the absence of the 
restraints of home and Church, tend to the worst of passions and to 
the corruption of the best morals. But here in the presence of the 
dead, whose ears are forever deaf to our praise or censure, let it be 
our grateful duty to record that after five years in camp and field he 
returned to his home without a stain upon his character. Among 
ancient or modern warriors where shall we find his superior in moral 
elevation ? Given to no excess himself, he sternly rebuked it in oth- 
ers. He never took the name of his Creator in vain, and an im- 
pure story never polluted his lips. He assured me, as his pastor. 



704 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

that were he disposed to swear he would be compelled to pause to 
phrase the sentence. Such was the purity of his thought-life that 
he has been seen to blush and withdraw from the companionship of 
those who had presumed to relate a salacious story in his pre- 
sence. 

" His sense of justice was equalled only by his love of truth. He 
preferred honor to wealth and poverty to riches not his own. Oh, 
Americans, think of the pride of your nation, the glory of your age 
and the object of the world's admiration, having nothing to bequeath 
to those he loved, save his good name, and that heaven admitted to 
probate without the whisper of contention. When restored to the 
army as General and retired on full pay he was deeply touched ; and 
taking the wife of his youth by the hand he read the telegram 
which announced the fact, while, more eloquent than words, tears of 
gratitude to the nation he loved moistened those cheeks never 
blanched with fear. 

" Grant was not a stoic, insensible alike to pain and pleasure, in- 
different to public opinion or careless about his honor or his rights. 
He loved the praise of men, when the reward of honorable action. 
He was a sensitive, high-spirited, manly man, who had the will and 
the courage to contend to the last for what was his due. If he re- 
viled not when reviled, he accepted the divine philosophy that a 

* soft answer turneth away wrath.' If he was patient under misrep- 
resentation, he trusted him who said, * Vengeance is mine ; I will 
repay, saith the Lord.' Was he silent under reproach ? He prefer- 
red the greater satisfaction of the reversion of public opinion. Only 
those permitted to hear the whispers of his sensitive heart knew the 
grief and anguish he experienced when maligned by ignorance, 
prejudice and disappointed aspirants. He had meekness, but it was 
not the base surrender of self-respect. His indignation could burn 
like a mountain on fire, but he never permitted himself to be con- 
sumed by its volcanic eruptions. He knew his enemies and treated 
them v/ith a withering silence that has passed into a proverb. He 
knew his friends and true to his knightly soul, supported them in 

* good report and evil.' But he was never the companion of bad 
men ; and when he discovered in a pretended ^riend deception, or 
dishonesty, or immorality, he shook him off as Christ rejected Ju- 
das. He discerned charity with the precision of a seer. His great 
subordinates are in proof His chief associates in the affairs of 
State are illustrations. And the marvel of the ages will be that 
through a long and responsible public career he was so seldom de^ 
ceived when on the highest authority it is said : ' Satan himself is 
transformed into an angel of light ' to deceive the very elect. It 
has been the ill-fortune of the best and wisest of men, from "Moses 
to David, from David to Paul, from Paul to Luther, to be deceived 



DR. NEWMAN S SERMON. yo$ 

by pretended friends, Csesar had his Brutus. Washington had his 
Arnold. Christ had his Judas. 

" Oh ! great soul, forgive our impatience ; forget our lack of con- 
fidence ; blot from thy memory our cruel censures. Thou wert 
wiser and kindlier and better than we. We did it in the ardor of 
our patriotism and in our love of liberty. And from the serene 
heavens into which thou hast gone, join our song as we praise that 
God who gave thee the victory and us a redeemed nation. 

" The martyrs of one age are the prophets of the next. Fame 
succeeds defamation. Time changes all things. Washington en- 
dured a like ordeal. His Neutrality Proclamation touching the war 
between France and England and his treaty with England gave 
mortal offense. His action was denounced in Philadelphia, New 
York and Boston. His mock funeral was enacted in Philadelphia. 
The treaty was burned in public squares. His character was as- 
persed. He was declared destitute of merit as a statesman. He 
was charged with having violated the Constitution ; with having 
drawn from the public treasury for his private use, and his impeach- 
ment was publicly suggested. Time has changed the verdict of the 
people. He is now enthroned in the hearts of his countrymen ; 
and so shall his illustrious successor forever dwell in the grateful 
affections of the American people. 

" And where, in all the annals of our national life, shall we find 
another, save the sage of Mount Vernon, who was so truly a typi- 
cal American ? Is it true that his personal qualities were not 
brilliant ; that his salient points were not conspicuous ; that in run- 
ning parallels between him and other men of fame, a feeling of dis- 
appointment is experienced because there is not on the surface some 
prodigious element of power and greatness ? Yet he had this double 
advantage over all this world's heroes — he possessed the solid vir- 
tues of true greatness in a larger degree than other men of renown 
and possessed them in greater harmony of proportions. Some 
heroes have been men of singular virtue in particular lines of con- 
duct, but this foremost American possessed all these and other vir- 
tues in happy combination, not like single gems brilliant by isola- 
tion, but like jewels in a crown of glory united by the golden band 
of a complete character. What humility amid such admiration ; 
what meekness amid such provocation ; what fidelity amid such 
temptations ; what contentment amid such adversity ; what sincerity 
amid such deception ; what ' Faith, Hope and Charity ' amid such 
suffering! Temperate without austerity; cautious without fear; 
brave without rashness ; serious without melancholy ; cheerful with- 
out frivolity. His constancy was not obstinacy ; his adaptation was 
not fickleness ; his hopefulness was not Utopian. His love of jus- 
tice was equalled only by his delight in compassion, and neither was 
45 



706 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

sacrificed to the other. His self-advancement was subordinated to 
the public good. His integrity was never questioned ; his honesty 
was above suspicion ; his private life and public career were at once 
reputable to himself and honorable to his country. 

"As he was the typical American, should we be surprised to find 
his was the typical American home ? May we lift the curtain and 
look upon the holy privacy of that once unbroken household ? Oh ! 
the mutual and reciprocal love of wedded life within those sacred, 
precincts. Husband and wife the happy supplement of each other, 
their characters blending in sweetest harmony, like the blended col- 
ors in the bow of promise. He, strength, dignity and courage ; 
she, gentleness grace and purity. He, the Doric column to sustain ; 
she, the Corinthian column to beautify. He, the oak to support ; 
she, the ivy to entwine. In their life of deathless love, their hap- 
piness lay like an ocean of pearls and diamonds in the embrace of 
the future. He, unhappy without her presence; she, desolate with- 
out his society. She, pure, high-minded, discriminating, ardent, 
loving, intelligent ; he confided to her his innermost soul and blessed 
her with his best and unfailing love. She shared his trials and his 
triumphs, his sorrows and his joys, his toils and his rewards. How 
tender was that scene in the early dawn of that April day, when all 
thought the long-expected end had come ; he gave her his watch 
and t^enderly caressed her hand. It was all the great soldier had to 
give to the wife of his youth. And the dying hero whispered ; ' I 
did not have you wait upon me, because I knew it would distress 
you ; but now the end draws nigh.' And out from the * swellings 
of Jordan' he rushed back to the shore of life to write this tender 
message to his son: 'Wherever I am buried, promise me that your 
mother shall be buried by my side.' It is all a wife could ask ; it 
is all a husband could wish. Lovely and pleasant in their lives, and 
in their death they shall not be divided. Side by side they shall 
sleep in the same tomb and she shall share with him whatever hom- 
age future ages shall pay at his national shrine. It was his love for 
her that lifted his intellect above the ceaseless tortures of a malig- 
nant disease and threw oblivion over the sense of excruciating pain, 
that he might write his * Personal Memoirs,' that she should not 
want when he was gone. 

" And how tender was his care. He thought not of himself, but 
of her. To his son he said : ' I hope mother will bear up bravely.' 
To quiet her anxiety he wrote : ' Do as I do ; take it quietly. I give 
myself not the least concern. If I knew the end was to be to-mor- 
row, I would try just as hard to get rest in the meantime.' Would 
she keep holy vigils through the livelong night ? He wrote her : 
* Go to sleep and feel happy ; that is what I want to do, and am 
going to try for. I am happy when out of pain. Consider how 
happy you ought to be. Good night ! ' 



DR. NEWMAN S SERMON. 707 

" Did she seek to divert his mind from his sufferings by recalHng 
the victories of the past ? He repHed : * This is the anniversary of 
the battle of Vicksburg, that is a fact. I had not thought of it be- 
fore. It has been an important anniversary to us on two other oc- 
casions — one when our only daughter was born, and subsequently 
to Vicksburg, when we had a grandson born on that day.' 

" Was hers a laudable desire that the forthcoming Memoirs should 
be inscribed to her? Yet she surrendered her claim to the magna- 
nimity that inspired him to write : * It is a great deal better that it 
should be dedicated as it is. I made what reputation I have as a 
soldier. The troops engaged on both sides are yet living. As it 
is, the dedication is to those we fought against as well as those we 
fought with. It may serve a purpose in restoring harmony. If it 
does, it is of more importance than to gratify a little vanity. You 
will die ; it is hoped the book will live. After you and the soldiers 
who fought are all gone the dedication will have more value than 
now.' 

" And such was the tenderness of his love and solicitude for her 
and hers he surprised her by a letter found after his death. It came 
as a message to her from him after he had gone. When his spirit 
had returned to the God who gave it there was found secreted in 
his robe his last letter to her, enveloped, sealed and addressed. He 
had written it betimes, written it secretly, and carried the sacred 
missive day after day during fourteen days, knowing that she would 
find it at last. In it he poured forth his soul in love for her and 
solicitude for their children : 

" Look after our dear children and direct them in the paths of rectitude. It 
would distress me far more to think that one of them could depart from an 
honorable, upright and virtuous life than it would to know that they were pros- 
trated on a bed of sickness, from which they were never to arise alive. They 
have never given us any cause for alarm on their account, and I earnesdy 
pray they never will. 

"With these few injunctions and the knowledge I have of your love and 
affection, and of the dutiful affection of all our children, I bid you a final fare- 
well until we meet in another and, I trust, a better world. You will find this 
on my person after my demise. 

" Mt. McGregor, July 9, 1885. 

" If such was his character, such his life, such his home, what 
were the consolations that sustained him in sickness and cheered him 
in death ? Was life to him a ' walking shadow ' and death an endless 
dream ? Was his calmness in suffering born of stoical philosophy 
or inspired by Christian fortitude? Were his love and hope 
limited by earth and time or destined to live forever? Reared in 
the Methodist Episcopal Church and baptized in his last illness by 
one of her ministers, his religious nature was sincere, calm and 
steadfast. The principles of Christianity were deeply engrafted 



yoS LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

upon his spirit. Firm but never demonstrative, he was not a man 
of religious pretense. His hfe was his profession. He knew that 
Christianity had nothing to gain from him beyond the influence of 
a ' well-ordered life and a godly conversation/ but that he had 
-everything to gain from the power and promises of our Lord. 
More than in all things else he was taciturn touching his religious 
faith and experience, not, however, from doubt and fear, but from 
mental characteristics. The keenest, closest, broadest of all ob- 
servers, he was the most silent of men. He lived within himself. 
His thought life was most intense. His memory and imagination 
were picture galleries of the world and libraries of treasured 
thought. He was a world to himself His most intimate friends 
knew him only in part. He was fully and best known only to the 
wife of his bosom and the children of his loins. To them the man 
of iron will and nerve of steel was gentle, tender and confiding, and 
to them he unfolded his beautiful religious life. 

" On the 1 8th of April he said to me : ' I believe in the Holy 
Scriptures, and who so lives by them will be benefited thereby; 
men may differ as to the interpretation, which is human ; but the 
Scriptures are man's best guide.' He revered their source, recog- 
nized their influence, responded to their requisitions, trusted in 
their promises and found consolation in their hopes. His faith in 
God as the Sovereign Ruler and the Father Almighty was simple 
as a child's and mighty as a prophet's. Doing nothing for show, 
yet he made public recognition of God by his faithful and conscien- 
tious attendance upon divine worship. No public man heard more 
sermons than he, and he was the best of hearers. Whether in the 
obscurity of Galena, or in the conspicuousness of Washington, or in 
the private walks of life in New York, he was in his pew on the 
Lord's Day. And his pastor was always sure of his presence on a 
stormy Sabbath. His faithful attendance at church was largely in- 
spired by his respect for the Sabbath Day. On Monday, April 20, 
he said to me : ' I did not go riding yesterday, although invited and 
permitted by my physicians, because it was the Lord's Day, and 
because I felt that if a relapse should set in the people who are 
praying for me would feel that I was not helping their faith by rid- 
ing out on Sunday.' And on a Saturday night, to divert his atten- 
tion from pain and uneasiness, his eldest son suggested some inno- 
cent diversion, but when informed that it was near midnight the 
honored father replied : ' It is too near the Sabbath to begin any 
diversion.' \ 

" He was a man of prayer. It was on Sabbath evening, March 
22, when alone with Mrs. Grant, that his pastor entered, and the 
General with tenderest appreciation and gratitude reff^rred to the 
many prayers offered for him and mentioned societies and little 



DR. NEWMAN S SERMON. 



709 



children who had promised to pray for him daily ; and then, in 
answer to his minister's suggestion that we should join that univer- 
sal prayer, he replied with emphasis, ' Yes ; ' and at the conclusion 
of our supplication the illustrious invalid responded, 'Amen!" 
That amen by that silent man was more significant than volumes by 
others. But it was his custom and habit to call to prayers. On 
March 27, late in the evening, he requested all to enter 'his room 
for devotions, and made a special request for the presence of his 
'beloved physician ' and his friend Romero. And on this mount, 
to be hereafter hallowed ground, and where his monument shall 
rise, in grandeur, he said to an honored priest of another church : 

" I know and feel very grateful to the Christian people of the land for their 
prayers on my behalf. There is no sect or religion as shown in the Old or 
New Testaments to which this does not apply. Catholics, Protestants and 
Jews, and all the good people of all nations, of all politics as well as religions 
and all nationalities, seem to have united in wi>hing or praying for my im- 
provement. I am a great sufferer all the time, but the facts you have related 
are compensation for much of it. All that I can do is to pray that the prayers 
of all these good people may be answered so far as to have us meet m another 
and a better world. 

" U. S. Grant. 
"July 8, 1885. 

" He was not a bigot. Bigotry was no part of his noble and 
generous nature. While he demanded religion as the safeguard of 
a free people, he accorded to all the largest freedom of faith and 
worship. He was without prejudice ; he claimed that public educa- 
tion should be non-sectarian, but not non-religious. His Des 
Moines public speech on education was not against the Roman 
Catholic Church but against ignorance and superstition. The order 
issued during the War excluding certain Jewish traders from a 
given military district did not originate with him but came from 
higher authority, and was not against the religion of the Jews. 

" Strangers might regard him indifferent to the needy, yet the 
poor will rise up and call him blessed. Many were the pensioners 
on his kindly bounty. He gave his goods to feed the poor. While 
President he heard his pastor, on 'Active Christianity,' and in the 
discourse mention was made of a soldier's widow, sick and poor, 
and of a blind man in pressing want. He had just reached the 
White House, when he sent me back this card with the money: 
' Please give ^10 to the blind man and ^10 to the soldier's widow.' 
On a Christmas eve he wrote me thus : 

"Executive Mansion, Dec. 24, 1869. 
"Dear Doctor: Please find inclosed my check for $100, for distribution 
among the poor, and don't forget ' the Ragged Schools ' on the Island. Yours 
truly, 

" U. S. Grant. 



7IO LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

"In private, unseen life he bore many of the fruits of the Spirit. 
He loved his enemies not as he loved his friends, but he loved them 
as enemies by doing them good as he had opportunity. Of all men 
known in a pastoral experience of thirty years, he displayed the 
spirit of forgiveness more than any other man. He caught the 
spirit of the Saviour's prayer : ' Father forgive them ; they know not 
what they do.' There is one high in official position in our nation 
who had traduced him at the point of honor, whereat a great soldier 
is most sensitive, and the wrong done was made public to the 
mortification of all. Grieved at what he had done, and confined to 
his sick-room, he who had offended was nigh unto death. But 
himself a man of proud and sensitive spirit, he sighed for reconcilia- 
tion. ' Would the President forgive the offense and call on the 
sick ? ' anxiously asked interested friends. A suggestion from me 
that it would be a Christian act to call was sufficient. The call was 
made ; the sick man revived, and old friendship was restored. And, 
rising to a magnanimity worthy a saint, he would not withhold an 
honor due, even from those who had done him a wrong. Who 
does not regret the death of such a man ? Heaven may be richer, 
but earth is poorer. On one of those delusive April days when 
hope revived in all our hearts I said to him : ' You are a man of 
Providence; God made you the instrument to save our nation, and 
he may have a great spiritual mission to accomplish by you and 
may raise you up.' In the most solemn and impressive manner, 
with a mind clear and a voice distinct, he replied : * I do not wish 
to proclaim it, but should he spare my life it is my intention and 
resolve to throw all my influence by my example in that direction.' 

*' Oh ! who would not even dare to die to do so much for man- 
kind ? And this was his consolation. When near his end he 
sought to cheer that precious woman who loved him as her life. 
' You ought to feel happy under any circumstances. My expected 
death called forth expressions of sincerest kindness from all the 
people of all sections of the country. The Confederate soldier 
vied with the Union soldier in sounding my praise. The Protest- 
ant, the Catholic and the Jew appointed days for universal prayer in 
my behalf All societies passed resolutions of sympathy for me 
and petitions that I might recover. It looked as if my sickness 
had had something to do to bring about harmony between the sec- 
tions. The attention of the public has been called to your child- 
ren and they have been found to pass muster. Apparently I have 
accomplished more while apparently dying than it falls to the lot of 
most men to be able to do.' Oh ! let me live the life of the righte- 
ous and let my last end be like his ! 

" And where in all the annals of the Church shall we find a dy- 
ing hour so full of divine repose ? His calm faith in a future state 



DR. NEWMANS SERMON. 7II 

was undisturbed by anxious doubt. His suffering and wasted body 
was but the casket for the resplendent jewel of his soul, and when 
death ruthlessly broke that precious casket an angel carried the 
jewel to the skies to lay it at the Saviour's feet. In the early light 
of April I, when all thought the end was 'come, the sufferer said to 
me : ' Doctor, I am going.' 

" * I hope the prospect of the future is clear and bright,' was my 
response ; and the answer came : ' Yes ; oh, yes.' Then followed a 
scene of infinite tenderness. The honored wife, the precious 
daughter, the devoted sons and their wives, each in turn ap- 
proached and he tenderly kissed them. " Do you know me, dar- 
ling ? ' was the loving wife's inquiry, and he whispered back : 
' Certainly I do, and bless you all in my heart' Such love melted 
the marble heart of death and the ' King of Terrors ' fled affrighted. 
The sufferer revived. Heaven added months to a life so dear to us 
all. When he had recovered sufficiently I asked him : ' What was 
the supreme thought on your mind when eternity seemed so near?* 

" ' The comfort of the consciousness that I had tried to live a 
good and honorable life,' was the response which revealed the 
hidden life of his soul. Again the angel of death cast his shadow 
over the one a nation loved. Amid the gathering gloom I said : 
* You have many awaiting you on the other side. ' 

" I wish they would come and not linger long,' was the answer 
of his Christian faith and hope. They came at last. They came to 
greet him with the kiss of immortality. They came to escort the 
conqueror over the ' last enemy ' to a coronation never seen on 
thrones of earthly power and glory. Who came ? His martyred 
friend, Lincoln ? His companion-in-arms, McPherson ? His faith- 
ful Chief of Staff Rawlins ? His great predecessor in camp and 
Cabinet, Washington ? And did not all who had died for liberty 
come? O calm, brave, heroic soul, sing thou the song of Christian 
triumph: *0 death, where is thy sting; O grave, where is thy 
victory ? Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory, through 
Jesus Christ our Lord.' 

" And that victory was at hand. From his view on Monday at 
the eastern outlook he was to ascend to behold a grander vision ; 
Tuesday came and went. Night drew on apace and death seemed 
imminent. Around his chair we knelt in prayer for some divine 
manifestation of comfort. Our prayer was heard. The sufferer 
revived. Again he wrote messages of love and wisdom. The 
nigfht wore away. Wednesday dawned on hill and dale. Hope re- 
vived. His intellect was clear and his consciousness was supreme. 
Again he wrote, and again he v/hispered the wishes of his heart, 
As came the eventide, so came his last night. From out of that 
chair wherein he sat and suffered, and wrote and prayed, tenderly 



712 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

he was carried to that couch from which he was never to rise. 
Around him we gathered and bowed in prayer to commend his de- 
parting spirit to the love and mercy of Him who gave it. He 
answered in monosyllables to questions for his comfort. The brain 
was the last to die. All were watchers on that memorable night. 
Recognitions were exchanged. A peaceful death and conscious- 
ness to the last breath were granted unto him. The last night had 
passed. 

'' 'Tis morning. The stars have melted into the coming light. 
The rosy-fingered morn lifts the drapery of the night. The distant 
mountains stand forth aglow. The soft, pure light of early dawn 
covers earth and sky. The dewdrop sparkles on the grass and in 
the daisy's cup. The birds from their sylvan coverts carol the mel- 
ody of a thousand songs. The world rejoices, and its many min- 
strels challenge the harpers of the sky. In an humble cottage, 
prone upon his couch, lies our Old Commander. He is dying. 

" 'Tis morning, and in the light of that day thousands of earnest 
faces flash with renewed concern. From many a shaded lane and 
mountain slope, from many a farm-house and splendid mansion, 
eager eyes look toward the mount of suffering and breathe a prayer 
to God for the one we loved. Alas ! he is dead. 

** 'Tis morning. It is the promise of a brighter day. The trump- 
eters of the skies are sounding the reveille. Their notes have 
reached the earth. The notes have reached our General's ear. He 
^ has gone to join the triumphant host. '^'Tis morning in Heaven ! " 

After the close of his discourse, Mr. Camp led in the singing of 
*>•" Nearer, My God, to Thee." Then came a brief benediction by 
Bishop Harris, and the preliminary services were ended. 

At 12-45 the two companies of artillery placed themselves in posi- 
tion at the left of the cottage, with arms reversed. Two buglers stood 
at the head of the line. At a signal from the officer they began 
to play a dirge, which sounded like a wail as it echoed through the 
pine trees. The soldiers moved slowly, and as they did eight 
members of the Grand Army appeared at the door carrying 
the purple-covered, silver-trimmed casket containing the body of 
General Grant. In front of the casket was the undertaker, behind 
whom came the clergyman and Dr. Douglas. Behind the casket 
marched a detachment of Grand Army men. Just behind them 
were Gen. Sherman, with Col. Fred. Grant upon his arm, and be- 
hind them came Jesse and Ulysses, Jr. Next were Gen. Frederick 
Dent, a brother of Mrs. Grant, and Dr. Sharpe, a brother-in-law, 
Gen. Creswell and Senor Romero. After them were Gen. Hancock 
and his staff, with the visitors who came up with them. 



CHAPTER XXIX. 

GENERAL GRANT'S LAST JOURNEY. 

Starting with the Body from Mt. McGregor— Received at Albany by Governor Hill— 
The Funeral Procession up Capitol Hill— Great Crowds Look upon the Face of the 
Dead Hero— The Sons at the Coffin— England's Warm Tribute to Grant— Sermon 
of Canon Farrar in Westminster Abbey, London. 

The transfer of the casket to the funeral car was made without 
delay. In a few moments the party was on board, and the train 
started away without a sound. It disappeared around the curve, 
leaving Mt. McGregor once more in quiet. Mrs. Grant succumbed 
to the excitement of the day very soon after the departure of the 
train. It had been arranged that the ladies of the family should 
leave at 3 o'clock and go directly to New York. Mrs. Grant 
thought, however, that she was unequal to the journey. 

The^car upon which the beautiful purple casket was placed 
has heretofore been used on this queer little mountain road for 
\[' observation '^ purposes. It was built without sides in order that 
passengers might command unbroken views of the beauties of 
the country. Uprights had been set at its four corners and along its 
length on either side, which formed the framework for a canopy of 
mourning. Beneath this\:anopy theN:asket was placed. Attached 
to theM'uneralN:ar were six narrow-gauge coaches. The first was 
occupied by Battery A, of the Fifth Artillery ; the second by Com- 
pany E, of the Twelfth Infantry ; the'^third by the three sons of 
f Gen. Grant, Dr. Newman, Dr. Douglas, Gen. Sherman, Gen. Horace 
'.Porter and the two faithful servants, ^Harrison and Henry; the 
fourth by Gen. Hancock and his staff; the fifth by a few privileged 
guests, including Mr. Drexel and the members of his family, and 
the sixth by representatives of the press. 

The smoke from the locomotive had been seen in Saratoga, and 
when suddenly a bend in the road broughtthe funeral train insight 
of that fashionable watering place there echoed upon the air the 
sound of artillery. A United States battery from Boston was estab- 
lished in a field near the Saratoga station. Near the right of the 
track were corn-fields which had been taken possession of by the 
public. The Mt. McGregor Railway depot in Saratoga is at 
Broadway, but the intelligence that the transfer of the remains from 
the narrow to the broad craucre road was to be made not at the sta- 
tion but at a considerable distance up the track, had in some way 

(713) 



714 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



become generally known, and a thousand people had tramped across . 
lots, through gardens and fields, to reach the spot. Private car- 
riages, landaus, victorias and dog-carts had found their way across 
and were drawn up, their horses snorting at the sound of the cannon 
on the cliff at the right of the railroad. Close down along the 
edge of the track were members of the G. A. R. with muskets at 
" present arms." 

The little mountain train halted close beside the track of the 
^- Delaware and Hudson Railroad, whereon was standing the Govern- 
*■ ment funeral train. An engine completely wrapped — smoke-stack, 
{ man-house and all — in heavy black cloth stood at the head of a 
train offline cars, all of which were not draped, but entirely covered 
with the cloth of mourning. The transfer of the remains from the 
Mt. McGregor cars to the funeral train was quickly made. The 
two companies of regulars were drawn up in line before the open door 
of the Woodlawn. The two buglers stirred the air with the notes of 
the same mournful melody — " The Dead March in Saul " — that had 
made the removal of the body from the cottage on the mountain so 
exquisitely pathetic. The officers of the army and the black- 
clothed civilians stood with uncovered heads, and the Brooklyn 
veterans tenderly transferred the casket from the little car to the 
larger one. When placed in the funeral car it rested upon a stand 
about a foot in height over which was spread the folds of the Ameri- 
can flag. The broadside doors leading into the funeral car were 
left open so that all the people who lined the road through the city 
of Saratoga were able to catch a glimpse of the casket as the train 
moved by. 

Following the Woodlawn' were three parlor cars and following 
these were four ordinary coaches. In the first of the parlor cars were 
I /seated the three Grant brothers, with Generals Sherman and Porter, 
\Dr. Newman, Dr. Douglas, the faithful" body ^^servants. General 
Hancock and his staff occupied the second car. The third was in- 
tended for and was to have been occupied, on the trip to New York, 
by Governor Hill and the members of his official family, but in the 
absence of the Governor at Saratoga was taken possession of by 
several members of the Albany City Council, who wore huge mourn- 
ing badges on their bosoms and looked lugubrious enough to be 
among the mourners in the first coach. The next car was occupied 
by the members of the press, after which followed the regular troops. 
The Brooklyn Guard of Honor and the six men of the Loyal 
Legion, with a detachment of regulars, entered the dead car, also 
two men of Wheeler Post, G. A. R. Soon after 2 o'clock Superin- 
tendent Voorhecs bade Conductor Thornton give the signal to start, 
and the impressive and heavy train moved through the throngs and 
away from Saratoga. 



GENERAL GRANTS LAST JOURNEY. 715 

At the Broadway crossing the first adequate idea of the popular 
outpouring of the people to witness the passage of the funeral train 
was given. Broadway was tightly jammed for a distance of several 
hundred feet on either side of the track by private carriages and 
public hacks, and an immense multitude of eager-faced spectators. 
Meantime the church bells were tolling, and echoing after the 
slowly moving train came the faint sound of the minute guns. The 
distance from Saratoga to Albany is thirty-nine miles. The schedule 
time for the train was one hour and twenty minutes. As Saratoga 
station had been left a moment or two ahead of time it was neces- 
sary, the military programme permitting of no deviation, that this 
gain should be lost before Ballston was reached. The long black 
procession, led by its crape-covered locomotive, therefore moved at 
a snail's pace past the green garden of the United States Hotel and 
out beyond the limits of the pleasure-loving city. Ballston Spa was 
reached at 2.35. An immense crowd had assembled on the long 
range of the station platform. The church bells at Ballston were 
tolling and manifestations of public grief were seen upon all sides. 
At Mechanicsville the cheap tenements and little dwellings that 
skirt the railroad track, boldly flaunted the red, white and blue 
colors from their colorless fronts, while the inhabitants stood with 
bared heads at the steps of their dwellings. At West Waterford it 
was the same. Its single street was choked up with spectators, ex- 
cept in the central strip where the iron tracks ran through. It 
seemed to be the aim of the people both here and at the flourishing 
town of Cohoes to place themselves within arm's reach of the fu- 
neral train and touch its sombre habiliments. 

In passing Round Lake, at 2:50, the platform was packed with 
school children, who held up black bordered flags as the train 
passed. There were the same silent crowds at Waterford. One 
family living near the station at Waterford were gathered about a 
boy who wore a mourning cap and held aloft a banner, evidently 
home made, on which the black letters " U. S. G." on a white ground 
had been sewed. From Cohoes, which the train passed at 3:20, 
until Albany was reached, at 3:45, the sides of the track were lined 
with people, and there were crowds at short distances apart. The 
road crossings and stations were simply packed with people. Va- 
cant cars along the tracks were filled, and so were the roofs of fac- 
tories and of houses — wherever foothold could be had people were 
there. The same signs of general sorrow and the same decorous 
regard for the solemnity of the occasion that had been marked 
along earlier parts of the trip were observed to the end. 

From early morning the streets of Albany resounded with the 
beats of muffled drums. Companies and battalions in uniforms, 
commands of the Grand Army and Loyal Legion, wearing their in- 



71 6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

signia, and civic bodies in sober black, tramped to their rendezvous 
in the streets above and below the railroad station. The three di- 
visions into which the funeral procession was formed were in posi- 
tion and patiently waiting two hours before the funeral train arrived, 
from Mt. McGregor. Broadway, North Pearl and State streets 
were lined with the citizens and the visicors, who came in by thou- 
sands from Massachusetts and from the country around the capital 
city. Special trains were run over all the railroads to accommodate 
them. 

England's warm tribute. 

In far-off London, on the 4th of August, the mourners gathered 
in Westminster Abbey and listened to a most eloquent address 
from the eminent Canon Farrar. 

The Grant memorial service in Westminster Abbey was an im- 
posing event in the history of England. The edifice was crowded 
with a congregation, nearly every member of which was a dis- 
tinguished person. The order of the service was as follows : 

1. Schubert's '^ Funeral March." 

2. The funeral procession up the nave of the cathedral to the choir. 

3. The opening of the burial service. 

4. The Ninetieth Psahn. 

5. The day's lesson. 

6. Funeral sermon by Canon Farrar. 

7. Spohr's anthem, " Blest are the departed." 

8. Handel's anthem, " His Body is Buried in Peace." 

9. The two concluding prayers of the burial service. 
■ 10. The blessing. 

II. The "Dead March" in Saul. 

The funeral address, delivered by Canon Farrar, was most im- 
pressive, and was listened to in almost breathless silence. The 
effect of this sermon, delivered by one of the most extraordinary 
English ecclesiastics that ever lived, in England's peculiar and most 
sacred temple, over the greatest soldier produced by a former 
British colony made by rebellion independent and powerful among 
the countries of the world, and to-day the mother country's 
greatest rival among nations, was simply indescribable. Among- 
the distinguished Englishmen present were Mr. and Mrs. Gladstone, 
the Earl of Iddesleigh, Earl Cranbrook, the Right Hon. Mr. 
Forster, Sir Lyon Playfair, and a great number of peers and mem- 
bers of the House of Commons. There were also present Prime 
Minister Salisbury, the Duke of Cambridge, Commander in-Chief 
of the British Army ; the Marquis of Lome, Gen. Lord Wolseley 
and Senor Martinez, Chilian Ambassador to England. Among 
the distinguished Americans present were Chief-Justice Waite, ex- 
Attorney-General Benjamin H. Brewster, Senator Edmunds, 
Senator Hawley, Mr. Bancroft Davis, the Rev. Charles Bridgman, 



I 



GENERAL GRANTS LAST JOURNEY. 717 

Consul-General Waller and Messrs. Morgan, Field, Marble, 
Smalley and Potter. Queen Victoria was represented at the ser- 
vice by an equerry. The Prince of Wales, the Duke of Connaught 
and the Duke of Edinburgh were also represented by equerries. 
The British Army was represented by 16 staff officers. The Prince 
;iiid Princess Teck, the Rev. Dr. Newman Hall, Bishop Hurst and 
Gen. Alison were also among those who attended the service. All 
the members of the American Embassy and nearly all the mem- 
bers composing the other embassies occupied places in the Abbey. 
Mr. Gladstone remained standing throughout Canon Farrar's ad- 
dress, with his hand to his ear, listening intently to the eulogy. 

"The following is Canon Farrar's address. His text was taken 
from Acts xiii, 30 : 

' Plight years have not passed since the late Dean Stanley, whom 
Americans so loved and honored, was walking around this Abbey 
with General Grant, explaining its wealth of great memorials. 
Neither of them had nearly attained the allotted span of human 
life. Both might have hoped that many years would elapse before 
descending to the grave, full of years and honors. This is only 
the fourth summer since Dean Stanley fell asleep. To-day we 
assemble at the obsequies of the great soldier, whose sun set while 
it was vet day, and at whose funeral-service in America tens of 
thousands are assembled at this moment to mourn with the weep- 
ing family and friends. I desire to speak simply and directly, with 
generous appreciation, but without idle flattery of him whose death 
has made a nation mourn. His private life, his faults or failings 
of character, whatever they may have been, belong, in no sense, to 
the world. They are before the judgment of God's merciful for- 
giveness. We will touch only upon his public actions and services. 
Upon a bluff overlooking the Hudson, his monument will stand, 
recalling to future generations the dark page in the nation's history 
which he did so much to close.' 

"After eloquently tracing General Grant's boyhood and man- 
hood, the speaker said : 

'If the men who knew him in Galena — obscure, silent, unpros- 
perous, unambitious — had said, if any one had predicted, that he 
would become twice President and one of the foremost men of the 
day, the prophecy would have seemed extravagantly ridiculous. 
But such careers are the glory of the American continent; they 
show that the people have a sovereign insight into intrinsic force. 
If Rome told with pride that her dictators came from the plow-tail, 
America may record the ans\^'er of the President, who, when asked 
what would be his coat of arms, answered proudly, mindful of his 
early struggles: "A pair of shirt-sleeves." The answer showed a 
noble sense of the dignity of labor, a noble superiority to the vani- 



7l8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

ties of feudalism, a strong conviction that men should be honored 
simply as men, not according to the accident of birth. America 
has had two martyred Presidents, both sons of the people. One, a 
homely man, who was a farm-lad at the age of seven, a rail splittei 
at nineteen, a Mississippi boatman at twenty-eight, and who, in 
manhood, proved one of the strongest, most honest, and God-fear- 
ing of modern rulers. The other grew from a shoeless child to be 
an humble teacher in the Hiram Institute. With those Presidents 
America need not blush to name the leather-seller of Galena. 
Every true man derives a patent of nobleness direct from God. 
Was not the Lord for thirty years a carpenter in Nazareth ? Lin- 
coln's and Garfield's and Grant's early conscientious attention to 
humble duties fitted them to become kings of men. 

'The year i86i saw the outbreak of the most terrible of modern 
wars. The hour came, and the man was needed. Within four 
years Grant commanded an army vaster than had ever before been 
handled by man. It was not luck, but the result of inflexible faith- 
fulness, indomitable resolution, sleepless energy, iron purpose, per- 
sistent tenacity. He rose by the upward gravitation of natural 
fitness. The very soldiers became impregnated with his spirit. 
General Grant had been grossly and unjustly called a butcher. He 
loved peace and hated bloodshed. But it was his duty at all costs 
to save the country. The struggle was not for victory, but for 
existence; not for glory, but for life or death. In his silence, de- 
termination and clearness of insight. Grant resembled Washington 
and Wellington. In the hottest fury of battle his speech never 
exceeded "Yea, yea," and "Nay, nay." God's light has shown for 
the future destinies of a mighty nation, that the war of 186 1 was a 
necessary, a blessed work. The church has never refused to honor 
the faithful soldier fighting for the cause of his country and his 
God. The cause for which Grant fought— the unity of a great 
people, the freedom of a whole race — was as great and noble as 
when, at Lexington, the embattled farmers fired the shot which 
resounded around the world. The South accepted a bloody arbi- 
trament. But the rancor and fury of the past are buried in ob- 
livion. The names of Lee and Jackson will be a common heritage 
with those of Garfield and Grant. Americans are no longer North- 
erners and Southerners, but Americans. 

'What verdict history will pronounce upon Grant as a politician 
and a man, I know not; but here and now the voice of censure, 
deserved or undeserved, is silent. We leave his faults to the mercy 
of the merciful. Let us write his virtues on brass for men's exam- 
ple. Let his faults, whatever they may have been, be written on 
water. Who can tell if his closing hours of torture and misery 
were not blessings in disguise — God purging the gold from dross. 



GENERAL GRANTS LAST JOURNEY. 719 

until the strong man was utterly purified by his strong agony? 
Could we be gathered in a more fitting place to honor General 
Grant? There is no lack of American memorials here. We add 
another to-day. Whatever there be between the two nations to 
forget and forgive is forgotten and forgiven. If the two peoples 
which are one be true to their duty, who can doubt that the desti- 
nies of the world are in their hands ? Let America and England 
march in the van of freedom and progress, showing the world not 
only a magnificent spectacle of hum.an happiness, but a still more 
magnificent spectacle of two peoples united, loving righteousness 
and hating iniquity, inflexibly faithful to the principles of eternal 
justice, which are the unchanging law of God.' 

'^The flags upon the royal residences at Windsor and Osborne 
and upon the royal yachts Osborne and Victoria and Albert were 
lowered at 2 P. m., and remained down during the memorial ser- 
vices in Westminster Abbey." 

Governor Hill and General Sherman were the first persons to 
view the remains in Albany. They passed on opposite sides of the 
casket, and, joining each other at the head of the coffin, proceeded 
arm in arm back to the Executive Chamber. Then followed 
Generals Farnsworth and Carr and their respective staffs, General 
Hancock's staff, members of the Legislature, State officials and 
their families. Two members of the guard of honor stood at the 
head and two at the foot of the bier, to divide the stream of persons 
as they passed around the casket. The procession filed past the 
glass covered bier without halting. In the front line were the 
Grand Army of the Republic guard of honor, extending the full 
length of the corridor, from north to south. The catafalque and 
surroundings, heretofore described, were greatly admired, and it 
would be exceedingly difficult to improve upon the arrangements in 
any way. The head of the casket being much higher than the foot 
the opportunity for viewing the remains was improved. There was 
ample width between the upright supports of the canopy, and there 
was no crowding or jostling whatever, all passing in an orderly and 
respectful manner. The glass case of the casket extended the whole 
length, thus exposing the entire body to view. 

According to figures furnished by an official in Albany the 
following is a fair approximation of the numbers who looked at the 
remains : 

August 4, from 6 P. M. to 7 P. M 7,400 

August 4, from 7 P. M. to 10 P. M 20.000 

August 4, from 10 P. M. to 12 M 1 1,900 

August 5, from 12 M. to 2 A. M 7,200 

August 5, from 2 A. M. to 4 A. M 1,600 

August 5, from 4 A. M. to 6 A. M 3,100 

August 5, from 6 A. M. to 8 A. M 4.800 

August 5, from 8 A. M. to 10.30 A. M. (estimated) 15,300 



720 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Early on Wednesday morning the city and its multitudinous 
array of strangers was astir. Hurried breakfasts were partaken of, 
and preparations for the Grant demonstration were made by some, 
while others looked out for the transportation of the funeral train, 
with its added cars for the benefit of guests desired by the family 
or those whose positions entitled them to seats in any event in one 
of the funeral cars. It was not known until late Tuesday night 
that the committee of a hundred citizens appointed by Mayor Grace 
to go to Albany and accompany the cortege to this city were ex- 
pected to come down with the special train, but as soon as the 
superintendent was informed of that fact, he directed that two extra 
cars should be draped and made ready for their use, so that the 
train, already very heavy, finally consisted of eleven parlor cars — a 
particularly long and difficult train to manage. At a very early 
hour yesterday morning the people began to throng about and pass 
through the Capitol, looking, as will be seen by the above table to 
the number of fifteen thousand, at the remains, between the hours 
of eight and half-past ten, and nearly twenty thousand between the 
hours of six and half-past ten. It was understood that the proces- 
sion would be the same yesterday as on Tuesday, and this fact drew 
to the already overcrowded city an immense number of strangers 
from the neighboring cities and the country all round about, so that 
in its chief portions Albany was literally packed, and with great 
difficulty one could make his progress from street to street. The 
early morning salutes were fired according to orders, and during 
the entire forenoon half-hour guns boomed heavily, and the tolling 
of the bells added to the solemnity of the occasion. Without 
any special variation from the programme, the crowds upon 
the streets and the throngs passing through the Capitol, the 
morning wore away until half-past ten, at which time the gates 
were shut. 

It is probable that twenty-five thousand people were shut off at 
half-past ten this morning when the gates were closed, and none 
but the guard of honor from the U. S. Grant Post, Wheeler Post of 
Saratoga and six men of the military order of the Loyal Legion, 
were allowed to remain while the undertakers prepared, as far as pos- 
sible, the remains for this last trying stage of this long, last jolting. 
When all was ready. General Hancock, who was mounted on a 
magnificent black charger, attended by his staff, rode to the Capitol, 
accompanied by General Farnsworth and his staff. There they 
were met by Governor Hill and his staff in full uniform, who were 
waiting in their honor. After perfunctory interchanges of civility, 
and friendly interchanges of courtesy, also, the general in command 
intimated that all was ready. 



GENERAL GRANT's LAST JOURNEY. 72 1 



ACTION OF THE NEW YORK LEGISLATURE. 

The Legislature of the State of New York met at Albany on 
Friday morning, at half-past ten o'clock. Mr. Ellsworth offered a 
resolution empowering the president and clerk to provide a record 
of the proceedings for the journal of the next Legislature. 

The Assembly Committee, Messrs. Arnold and Cutler, then 
announced the invitation to meet in joint Assembly. The Senators 
formed in line and proceeded to the Assembly Chamber. As they 
entered the Chamber the members of the Assembly rose. Presi- 
dent McCarthy was called to the chair by Speaker Erwin, and 
Senator Ellsworth, chairman of the Committee on Resolutions, 
read the following : 

" The members of the Legislature of the State of New York, assembled at the 
Capitol for the purpose of representing the people of the State in this period of 
national mourning over the death of Ulysses S. Grant — 

" Resolved, That the people of the State of New York mourn the loss of the 
nation's greatest defender and the most illustrious citizen of his day, whose 
matchless services to the Republic in its times of sorest need command our 
highest admiration and gratitude. That as he wrought for the entire nation, 
for the world and for posterity, so his fame as the greatest 'servant of a right- 
eous cause,' both in war and in peace, is the heritage of the nation and of 
mankind. That while a man of peace, he became a soldier that permanent 
peace might be possible; that as the commander of armies he was the equal 
of the world's greatest military chieftains, and surpassed them all in this, that 
he twice conquered — first, by the irresistible might of his genius of arms, and 
then by the equally irresistible force of his magnanimity and considerate gen- 
erosity; that as President and citizen he rendered incalculable service; that 
his fame will receive increasing lustre as men come to value more justly the 
pure elements of simple, sincere and magnanimous manhood combined with 
the greatest abilities revealed in the noblest services; that in the retirement of 
private life his demeanor reflected credit upon the name of American citizen 
by its dignified and manly attributes, by the wholesome nature of his influence, 
which in the later days of his life was specially directed to the establishment of 
unity and fraternity throughout the land, and by an example of patient resig- 
nation and nobility of character which invites the emulation of all men; that 
with profound respect and gratitude we recognize in his whole career that 
modest and unselfish devotion to duty which was his crowning glory. 

"'Resolved, That the next Legislature be required to enter upon the journal 
of the Senate and of the Assembly a record of these resolutions, and that a 
copy of the same be engrossed and sent to the family of the deceased, with 
assurances of our condolence and sympathy with them in this hour of their 
bereavement. 

''Resolved, That the members of the Legislature attend the funeral in a 
body, and that the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the Assembly, 
with nine Senators and fifteen members of the Assembly, to be appointed by 
the presiding officers, be a committee to accompany the remains to the city of 
New York." 



46 



CHAPTER XXX. 

FROM ALBANY TO NEW YORK CITY. 

The Start for New York — Down the Hudson — On the Train — A Storm — Entering 
the City of New York — Grant at Home Once More — A Vast Crowd Salutes His 
Remains — The Funeral Car — The March Down Town — Affecting Scenes Along 
the Route — The Cortege — The Funeral Car at the City Hall — The Coffin Placed 
on >'he Catafalque — The Body Lying in State — Action of Ex-Confederate Officers. 

THE START FOR NEW YORK. 

At half-past eleven, drawn by six black horses with mourning 
trappings, the funeral car started down the street, the heavy casket 
resting on a black dais within a mounted catafalque. Companies 
of regulars were on either side of the car, the Grand Army guard 
walked behind, brazen trumpets rang forth the note of preparation 
and in good order the several organizations fell in, until a great 
procession was formed. They moved along, every step marked by 
the loud booming of a cannon and made resonant by the attendant 
ringing and tolling of all the bells in all the steeples. They had 
but an hour in which to make their long march, to satisfy the affec- 
tionate curiosity of the attending multitude, estimated as at least 
one hundred and fifty thousand. The Grants and their companions 
had driven to the depot, where the long black train stood in silence 
waiting for its sacred burden. At half-past twelve the casket was 
placed upon the Woodlawn car, while all the bells of the engines 
near kept time to the tolling of the bells beyond, and farewell salutes 
were fired from guns that echod along the adjacent hills and thence 
to the more remote mountains. The generals and the various mili- 
tary guests in gorgeous array took their seats. The distinguished 
citizens' committee from New York did the same, the soldiers were 
properly placed, and while the hot sun beat down upon the great- 
est crowd ever seen upo-n the streets of Albany, the long black 
suite pushed rapidly away, preceded by a pilot engine, so that no 
trouble could happen, no harm chance to mar the perfect outcarry- 
ing of the carefully arranged programme. 

DOWN THE RIVER. 

The trip from Albany was singularly devoid of incident, the 
chief features being, first, a perfect execution of the programme; 
second, a pleasant diversion at West Point, and, third, the marvel- 
ous washings of the rains from heaven and the subsequent devel- 
opment of a bow, parti-colored, that spanned the earth from horizon 
(722) 



FROM ALBANY TO NEW YORK CITY. 723 

to horizon. The train started one minute late, and there was in 
reahty nothing that might be called a stop between Albany and 
New York. Doubtless no crowd of equal magnitude was ever seen 
in the State capital as that which, with uncovered head, said an in- 
audible adieu as the remains were borne toward the metropolis of 
the nation. The streets in every direction were packed. The tops 
of buildings, the bridges, the craft in the river and all available 
places were dense with a respectful multitude. The band played a 
dirge as the long, sombre train passed out of the depot yard upon 
the Hudson River bridge, and the people looked on silently with 
uncovered heads. At East Albany the train passed between 
human walls. At Castleton the whole village seemed to be at the 
river front to see the train go on. At Shodack, Stuyvesant, Coxsackie 
and Stockport as many people as these riverside villages contain paid 
respectful heed to the passing of the dead soldier. At Hudson and 
at Poughkeepsie — in fact, at all the places on the road — there was 
considerable demonstration; but at West Point an incident occurred 
which touched the heart of the most callous spectator. For reasons 
peculiar to his family and himself the Academy was most dear. In 
all legislation, in all army talk, General Grant as general, and sub- 
sequently as President, and later on as citizen, did what he could to 
make VVest Point better and stronger. Naturally enough West 
Point sought to honor her distinguished son, and as the train ap- 
proached her guns pealed forth the national salute of thirteen guns 
— boom ! bang ! boom ! — which echoed and re-echoed and rever 
berated along the line of hills, touching even the mountains far be- 
yond. Drawn up at attention stood the West Point cadets as the 
train rolled in at Garrisons. Ceremonials peculiar to their order 
were indulged in, salutes were fired, recognitions were passed, and 
as the train moved on toward its depot, the hero being borne to 
his final resting-place, the funeral salute followed, filling every ear 
and touching every heart on the train. 

And still the train sped on. Although it started a minute late 
there was no minute behind time now. Open stood the valve, 
the steam was at its height, and with vehemence pushed that long 
train toward its halt. On came the train until the sullen walls of 
Sing Sing stared it in the face, when all of a sudden a cloud, not 
much larger than the hand of man, assumed phenomenal proportions 
and blackened the entire dome from river front to mountain peak.. 

A MARVELOUS STORY. 

Quick came peals of thunder, prefaced by brilliant flashes of 
zigzag lightning. Peal after peal echoed and rolled about the hills. 
The quick, large drops that fell were followed soon by voluminous 
streams, and they by torrents, while the wild winds whistled and 



724 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

whirled about the eleven cars and the mammoth engine as they 
sped onward. 

Swiftly moved the train, leaving the storm behind, and ere the 
verge of Yonkers was touched the last great rumble of the heavens 
sought refuge in a quiet rolling, far away, and the volumes dwindled 
to streams and they to drops, as though tears were falling on the 
coffin of the dead. Presently there came a beautiful spectacle that 
charmed every eye; riveting the attention of all and cheering every 
heart, the rainbow of promise, that stretched from one side of the 
vast expanse to the other, spanning the entire distance, with its 
many lines and demarcations of exquisite, clearly distinguishable 
color. On came that train whizzing through the crov/ded streets of 
Yonkers, through the darkened tunnel, while guns from the neigh- 
boring hills belched out their salute and bells rang in the steeples 
of the upper town, giving hint to those below that that for which all 
waited at last had come. 

ENTERING THE CITY'S HEART. 

New York had awaited the train with sorrowing, sympathetic 
heart, f ler people felt that while the dead soldier was the country's 
hero they had a peculiar claim to him, and while the nation 
laid mourning tribute upon his bier it was theirs to do him special 
reverence. His home had been among them. His figure was a 
familiar one on their streets. He had met the first great misfor- 
tunes of his life in this city. Here financial disaster had overtaken 
him, and here he had hovered for months 'twixt life and death. As 
the funeral train rolled in the people recalled the starting off, 
on a warm June morning, of that other train that was to carry him 
to Mt. McGregor and hoped-for health. They had from afar 
watched the fluctuations of his disease with tenderness and solici- 
tude. They had mourned when the message came that his life had 
passed away; and now he was brought home dead. Military and 
civic honor accompanied his remains. Other and even more im 
posing honors were awaiting them. The city was deeply buried in 
the drapings of sorrow as it never had been before. Guns were 
being fired at regular intervals from his future resting place in 
Riverside Park, and from old Fort George, on the Harlem. All 
over the city the church bells were tolling a requiem. 

IN THE GRAND CENTRAL DEPOT. 

Not many people had been admitted to the Grand Central 
Depot. Besides two-score policemen there were not more than a 
hundred men and women there aside from those who were hurry- 
ing to catch outgoing trains. There was no mourning drapery 
within the big structure, but the arches and doorways without were 
covered. Orders had been issued that the trucks on the east side 



FROM ALBANY TO NEW YORK CITY. 



725 



of the depot should be cleared, and half an hour before the train 
was to arrive engines puffed in and drew away to other points the 
cars that had been standing there. The windows that looked down 
on the interior of the depot were filled with people, as was the bal- 
cony that runs along the Forty- second street side. 

THE FUNERAL CAR. 

Suddenly there was an unusual stir among the people at the ed^Te 
of the crowd and then a craning of necks. The crowd pressed 
closely upon the heels of those in front of them and awaited with 
eager curiosity the explanation of the commotion. 

Then at some distance there was seen slowly advancino- the 
heavily draped funeral car, drawn by twelve black horses,^each 
caparisoned in black and led by a colored man dressed in a suit of 
dark cloth, with white gloves and high silk hat, around which was 
a mourning band. As the car drew near a hush fell upon the as- 
sembled multitude. The car passed through Vanderbilt avenue, 
and, turning into Forty-third street, stopped at the southwest 
corner. The spectators pressed forward to look at it, but were 
kept back by the police. A wooden staircase covered with black 
material was placed at the rear for the use of the pall-bearers in 
placing the casket on the car. 

ALL READY. 

All was now ready for the reception of the remains. A kw 
minutes before five o'clock the beat of drums had been heard, and 
a band of forty pieces wheeled from Fourth avenue into Vander- 
bilt avenue at the head of the 400 soldiers of the Seventy-first 
regiment, preceding whom came the mounted officers of the First 
Brigade. The men formed on Vanderbilt avenue, with their right 
on Forty-third street, and disposed themselves for the reception'' of 
the remains. The people at the windows, on the stoops and roof- 
tops and in the streets crowded forward. The hands of the clock 
on the Vanderbilt avenue side of the depot pointed to five P. M. 
Word that the train was coming in on time spread like wild-fire 
among the great crowd of spectators. A few minutes afterward 
General Hancock and his staff filed slowly out of the depot 

THE JOURNEY ENDED. 

It was just four minutes after five o'clock. There was a clicking 
of switches, a waving of trackmen's arms and the black-draped 
funeral train came in sight. Slowly it moved and with little noise. 
The engine had already switched off. A white-capped brakeman 
waited until the baggage car, which led, was within twenty feet of 
the pilot engine, when he turned the stop of the air valve, and 
almost without a creak or ajar the train of eleven cars came to a 



72"6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Stop. Scarcely a bit of wood-work was visible. Black drapings 
covered everything, only relieved by flags looped up on either side. 
There was an opening in the side of the car which followed the 
baggage car. Through this could be seen the casket, its silver 
mounting showing out brightly from the dark purple covering. 
The low dais on which the casket rested was covered by an Ameri- 
can flag. Men in Grand Army uniform, with medals on their 
breasts and a bit of crape tied about the arm, stood upright and 
silent at either side of the casket. They held their slouch hats in 
their hands. The Committee of One Hundred, that had gone on 
from New York to escort the remains, stepped from their car and 
formed in double file at its side. Ex-Governor Alonzo B. Cornell 
and ex-Mayor Edward Cooper headed the line. All were un- 
covered, and there was no word spoken. The scene was too im- 
pressive to permit of idle talking. Men stood about with bared 
heads and countenances in which there was no levity. Veterans 
looked at the casket that held all that was left of their old com- 
mander, and in their bronzed faces there was deep sorrow that he 
had been called away. 

MOVING THE CASKET. 

At a signal the men of the U. S. Grant Post, who were acting as 
pall-bearers, lifted the casket and carefully and tenderly lowered it 
from the car on to a hand truck, such as is used in Woodlawn 
Cemetery. Then the different bodies moved forward with slow 
tread. The military Order of the Loyal Legion, New York Com- 
mandery, followed the body, and behind them came a detachment 
of the Fifth United States artillery. The walls of the depot build- 
ing sent back the measured tread of the troops and filled the place 
with echoes. At the plaza that runs along the Forty-second street 
end of the building a brief halt was made till Inspector Dilks ap- 
peared in the doorway and motioned that all was in readiness for 
the procession to emerge. Outside the Seventy-first regiment 
formed a lane through which the body was borne. There was at 
once the sharp cry of officers to their men calling for a " Present 
arms !" the clicking of the muskets as they were brought to the 
present, the clattering of hoofs as aides-de-camp dashed here and 
there carrying instructions, and above all the strains from a band, 
unseen as yet, playing a funeral dirge. The great multitude 
crowded upon the police and soldiers in their efforts to catch a 
glimpse of the casket. Over the pavements the procession slowly 
moved till the funeral car was reached at the corner of Forty-third 
street. Up the steps leading to it the pall-bearers carried their 
honored burden and laid it under the canopy upon the dais to 
which three steps ran up. At once the undertaker's assistants 
fastened it there, so that should there be any jolting it would be in 



FROM ALBANY TO NEW YORK CITY. 727 

no danger of toppling off. All this time the band played its solemn 
dirge, and people looked down from the roofs and windows of the 
surrounding buildings while the arranging of the procession went 
forward. General Hancock and his staff and the Committee of 
One Hundred were driven off in carriages to Fifth avenue, where 
other lines were forming. Colonel Fred. Grant and Ulysses S. 
Grant, Jr., who brought up the rear of the procession, entered a 
carriage, which drew up abreast of the funeral car. The face of 
Harrison, the General's faithful colored attendant, looked sadly out 
of another carriage window. General Horace Porter, Dr. Newman 
and gray-bearded Dr. Douglas — the latter with a black and white 
sash running from his shoulder to his waist — were driven up ahead 
of the funeral car. While the driver was lowering the upper part 
of the carriage the horses took fright and dashed off, but were 
stopped before they had gone far. A mishap occurred at the 
funeral car, too. The first eight of the prancing black horses that 
were to draw it started off before the signal was given. The heavy 
straps that held them to the car parted, and ten minutes were lost 
in repairing the damage. Finally all was in readiness and the word 
was given to start. 

THE MARCH DOWN TOWN. 

As the great black car rolled toward Fifth avenue there were 
sounds of bugles and flashings of glittering steel. The bugle 
sounds grew louder and the black plumes on the catafalque swayed 
majestically as the twelve black horses moved forward. A burst 
of funeral music swelled through the air and thrilled the hearts of 
the multitude, which uncovered and looked with moistened eyes up 
at the purple casket. A company of regular troops wheeled forward 
on each side of the car with shouldered arms. It was the army 
guard. A group of veterans from the Grand Army post that has 
guarded the body since death trudged along behind the guard. 
When Fifth avenue was reached the scene was one of splendor. 

A sea of bayonets melted at a single bugle call and every rifle 
was reversed. 

There was a wild clatter of hoofs, and a line of mounted olice- 
men swept down Fifth avenue, charging at the black crowd and 
driving it back. Every window for a mile was alive with faces, and 
the multitude on the sidewalks was so dense that it looked like a 
mourning fringe. Behind the policemen rode General Hancock on 
a brown charger, and the crowd applauded the soldier and his 
brilliantly uniformed staff When the General reached Tw^enty- 
third street he took his place at the head of the column and the 
march began. Row after row of soldiers passed with reversed arms 
and slow steps, while the air was filled with solemn music. 



728 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



THE CORTEGE. 

First came the police, followed by General Hancock and his 
staff. Then came a battery of the Fifth United States artillery with 
their standards draped. A battalion of artillery armed as infantry 
next marched along with rigid lines and wailing music from the 
light battery band of Governor's Island. A group of scarlet bu- 
glers walked in the rear of the band. 

Now all the bells were tolling. Men and women were stand- 
ing bareheaded as the sombre chariot was seen in the distance. 
The river of black that lined on the sidewalks opened into a sea of 
black at Madison square, where the monuments of Farragut and 
Worth looked down upon the moving cavalcade. 

Two companies of marines, with orange epaulets and snowy 
helmets, marched in front of two companies of blue jackets from 
the man-of-war Swatara, who also carried rifles reversed. General 
Shaler and his staff moved along with draped sword hilts at the 
head of the First brigade of State troops. A few lines of prancing 
horses, scarlet plumes, bright sabres and busy buglers marked the 
Second battery without its guns. There was a clear space, and 
then Gilmore's Band led the Twenty-second regiment, playing 
the funeral chorus from ^'The Martyrs." 

Waves of white helmets rolled down the street. Then another 
band in gold and scarlet made the air throb, while the roll of muf- 
fled drums filled every pause. Aline of white plumed officers rode 
behind the colonel of the Ninth regiment and then came billows of 
dark blue coats and black helmets rising and falling regularly. The 
Eleventh regiment's band hushed as Farragut's statue was reached 



and the fife and drum corps took up the burden of the mourning 
song. A carriage containing the Rev. Dr. Newman, side by s'.de 
with Drs. Douglass and Shrady, followed the soldiers. Then the 
massive car appeared with its twelve black horses led by colored 
grooms. 

After the car marched the little guard of thirteen men, picked 
from U. S. Grant Post No. 327, Grand Army of the Republic. 
Then came thirty-two carriages containing Governor Hill and his 
staff, the Senate Committee and the Committee of One Hundred 
representing the city of New York. Next in line was the Sixty- 
ninth regiment. The Eighth and Seventy-first regiments stretched 
in ripples of color to the rear, where a line of policemen acted as 
file closers. 

So the noble procession moved through the draped city, past a 
hundred thousand reverent spectators and through long lines of 
policemen. All flags were at half mast and the streets were at times 
walls of black. The space in front of the Fifth Avenue Hotel, was 



FROM ALBANY TO NEW YORK CITY. 729. 

packed from curb to curb, and through the middle of the mass a 
lane was cut by the procession. Every stoop was jammed with 
spectators. They hung out of windows, watche I through transoms 
and peered over rooftops. A more impressive spectacle could not 
be imagmed. 

DOWN BROADWAY. 

When the procession wheeled through Waverly place into Broad- 
way a little girl threw a handful of flowers from a window. The 
cortege moved on through the miles of black draperies which 
all New Yorkers have seen on Broadway. As the car and its pur- 
ple casket advanced the murmuring of the crowds sounded like the 
sea hushing after a storm It was all genuine, heartfelt emotion 
stirred up in thousands of hearts by the sweet, plaintive music and 
the presence of the dead soldier. Away down Broadway the crowd 
stretched, now filling the street from wall to wall, and straining its 
eyes for a sight of the procession, now parting and falling back to 
the curb line to let the cortege pass. Finally the masses opened 
out into a broader multitude, and from out of the green trees rose 
the figure of Justice, robed to the feet. It was the City Hall. 
Another rest for the hero. Another Shrine for the people. Slowly 
the soldiers marched toward the square. The air was filled with 
the sound of dirges. Officers rode here and there with orders. 
Bugles blended their shrill blasts into solemn harmonies. The 
color bearers fell back and the regular troops passed on down Broad- 
way, while the Twenty-second and Ninth regiments wheeled into 
the plaza in front of the City Hall. Then the rest of the troops 
fell to the west side of Broadway and faced east with presented 
arms, while the funeral car passed on the plaza, each band playing 
a dirge. 

As early as four o'clock the people had assembled in hundreds at 
the City Hall. 

THE DISTANT FUNERAL MARCH. 

It was nearly seven o'clock, and the western sky was crimsoned 
with the glory of the setting sun, when the expectant crowd, whic^h 
had waited so long and so patiently, caught the soft notes of sa!d 
music wafted on the evening breeze. Instantly there was a surging 
of the masses toward the Broadway side of the Park and a hush of 
expectancy. Gradually the sounds grew more distinct, and then 
the sweet strains of Chopin's " Marche Funebre " were distinguished 
and the advance guard of mounted police came into view. Then 
came General Hancock and his staff, their horses prancing proudly 
to the music. General Hancock and his aids drew up just within 
the entrance to the plaza, and Captain Allaire drove back the crowds 
on Broadway so as to leave room for the regular troops and the 
naval detachment to march on down Broadway, and the Governor's 



J30 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Island Light Battery Band led the way, still playing Chopin's im- 
pressive music. After the regulars had gone General Hancock and 
his staff faced about and rode on the plaza to the City Hall, followed 
by General Shaler and his staff. Then the second battery of the 
National Guard wheeled into the plaza and crossed to the Park 
Row side, where they formed two sides of a square facing the hall. 
The Twenty-second Regiment came next, the band playing the 
'' Dead March in Saul." The band halted in the plaza, just west of 
the City Hall, but the white coated troops marched with arms re- 
versed to the east end of the building and formed into two lines 
along the front, facing each other on opposite sides of the plaza. 
Meanwhile the Ninth Regiment had entered the enclosure from 
Broadway and then halted, so that the command formed an elbow, 
with a portion of the men at rest along the east end of the plaza 
and the remainder on Broadway. The men were in double lines 
and faced the funeral car, carrying arms after they came to a halt. 

THE FUNERAL CAR AT THE CITY HALL. 

Then there was a pause. The mournful music ceased. Every 
eye was turned toward Broadway. A trampling of hoofs was heard, 
and horses with black trappings were seen through the trees of the 
park. Then the funeral car wheeled slowly into the plaza. Thou- 
sands of heads were uncovered in the crowd, and there was perfect 
silence. 

As the car reached the spot opposite where the Twenty-second 
Regiment band stood Gilmore's musicians began once more to play 
the " Dead March in Saul." The effect was impressive in the extreme. 
The music ceased when the car had reached the front of the build- 
ing. Here the band of the Ninth regiment was stationed, and as 
the car advanced, more and more slowly as it neared the end of its 
journey, the funeral chorus from '' II Pollute " sounded with thrilling 
effect. 

AVhen the funeral car stopped in front of the entrance to the City 
Hall black covered steps were silently and deftly placed alongside, 
and the thirteen men of Grant Post who had guarded the body 
during the march mounted the platform and reverently carried the 
coffin to the ground. They bore it slowly up the marble steps into 
the vestibule, and as they entered the portal two buglers of the 
Second Artillery, who stood on either side, sounded a loud and 
weird funeral blast. The notes rang out like a wail. 

VIEWING THE DEAD HERO'S FACE. 

Long before the procession arrived everything was in readiness 
at the City Hall for the reception of the dead chieftain. A force of 
police guarded the approach to the catafalque. All the iron gate- 
ways were kept closed. A deep silence fitting the solemnity of the 



FROM ALBANY TO NEW YORK CITY. 73 1 

occasion pervaded the spacious vestibule, grandly solemn with its 
prolusion of mournful trappings. Presently the central gateway 
was opened and General Hancock, followed by members of his staff 
advanced mside to deliver the body to the city authorities. The 
casket was slowly borne inside by the Grand Army guard of honor 
who carried the body to the catafalque. Tenderly they lowered 
the casket upon its temporary resting place. Behind them came the 
Rev. Dr. Newman, Dr. Douglas and General Horace Porter and 
after them Colonel Fred. Grant, U. S. Grant, Jr., and Jesse Grant- 
the honored and grief-stricken sons of the illustrious soldier The 
dead hero s sons were followed by Governor Hill and his staff and 
Major-General Shaler. After these, with heads uncovered, came 
slowly filing in the Citizens' Committee of One Hundred led by 
ex-Governor Cornell and ex-Mayor Cooper. 

ONCE MORE AT REST. 

Directly after the arrival of the remains the Grant Post G. A R 
detail that had marched beside the funeral car as guard of honor 
was relieved and went to their quarters in the Astor House The 
second rehef of thirteen at once began their tour of duty. In char-e 
of this relief was Senior Vice-Commander Johnson, whose post wis 
at the head of the coffin. Six men stood on each side. 

T V\%}:^^^^ Legion guard of honor was in command of General 
J. J. Milhau. 

It was the good fortune of the Twenty -second regiment, National 
Guard, to have its officers chosen as the first guard of honor of the 
Illustrious military hero whom all delighted to honor. Eio-ht were 
on duty at a time and the reliefs were every two hours. " 

CONDITION OF THE BODY. 

Directly after the details of the various guards of honor had 
been arranged, the casket, borne by the members of the Grant 
Post detail, was removed to the private room adjacent to the 
Chamber of the Board of Aldermen for inspection, as to its con- 
dition. In addition to this, pursuant to the request of Colonel 
^red. Grant, badges of the Loyal Legion and Grand Army of the 
Republic were to be attached to the lappel of General Grant's coat, 
buperintending the examination of the body were Surgeon Brush 
ot the Grant Post, Grand Army of the Republic, and Deputy Coro- 
ner Jenkins. 

The lid of the casket, which had been placed on a table was 
removed under direction of Mr. Merritt, the undertaker, and Mr. 
bulhvan, the embalmer. As this was being done, the eyes of all 
who were present were turned toward the casket, and as quick as 
the remains were exposed to view a careful but anxious inspection 
was made of the features. It was greatly feared by some that 



732 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



they might be in such a condition as to render it unadvisable to 
expose them to public view. On the contrary, they were found in 
very good condition, as good, probably, as could be reasonably 
anticipated under the circumstances, two weeks lacking a day 
having elapsed since death. 

The expression of the face was one of calm, serene dignity, but 
with unspeakable indications of the severe, protracted physical 
suffering he underwent during his protracted illness. It was grati- 
fying to all present to know that the features could be seen, while 
the "body was lying in state by the great host of mourning friends 
he had left behind. 

Lieutenant Colonel Clarkson fastened to the coat the badge of 
the Loyal Legion, while Senior Vice Commander Johnson affixed 
the Grand Army of the Republic badge, the two being placed side 
by side. This done, the glass cover was placed on the casket 
and it was carried back to the catafalque in the main corridor and 
placed in state. 

^ THE PASSING THRONG. 

After the component parts of the military pageant had disap- 
peared through the various arteries of traffic around the City Hall 
the remains of the illustrious dead were in the hands of the muni- 
cipal authorities. The thousands of people realized this, and 
although they knew it would be some time before any one would 
be admitted to view them, they waited in solemn silence for that 
time to come. 

The plate glass top enabled a full length view to be taken of the 
dead General. 

ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTY A MINUTE. 

The signal was now given to admit the masses, and orderly and 
in silence they passed by the bier at the average rate of i6o 
persons a minute, or eighty on each side of the body. The casket 
was placed so low that all of the children who marched in the 
line obtained a full view of the illustrious dead. Some of the per- 
sons would stop to take a long look at the features of the hero, 
but the peremptory " Move on !" of the guard started them on 
on again. For four hours this double stream of humanity 
coursed by the coffin— women, girls, old men and boys, natives 
and Chinamen being among the number. Some showed signs of 
emotion, others of curiosity only ; but all preserved the reverent 
and subdued conduct suitable to the surroundings. The position 
of the guard in the vestibule during these hours was as follows : 
immediately at the head and foot of the bier stood a representative 
of the military order Loyal Legion of the United States ; on each 
side of them stood officers of the Twenty-second Regiment. On 
either side stood the members of Post 327, Grand Army of the Repub- 



FROM ALBANY TO NEW YORK CITY. 733 

lie, leaving a space between them and the remains for the pubhc to 
pass through. Behind them stood the other members of the guard 
of honor of the Twenty-second Regiment, with two aids from 
General W. G. Ward's staff on the left flank, and still further in 
tlie rear, on either side of the vestibule, was a line of police. 

CLOSED FOR THE NIGHT. 

As the night drew on the numbers grew less, so that not more 
than one hundred and twenty-five per minute were passing through 
the hall at midnight. At one o'clock the gates of the hall were 
closed, and the remains were left with the guards and twenty five 
policemen. 

NO NORTH, NO SOUTH. 

The heavy tread of the escort and the last sad strains of the 
mournful march had hardly died away in the distance as they ac- 
companied the illustrious remains of the nation's hero to the City 
Hall, when the parlors of the Hoffman House began to fill with 
brave men who wore the gray. Unanimously electing General 
John B. Gordon, of Georgia, as chairman, the meeting of ex-Con- 
federates remained at ease while the committee appointed for the 
purpose — Generals W. H. Loring and W. W. Lilley and Majors 
Quincey, Davies and Mayo — should draft resolutions expressive of 
the ex-Confederate sentiment touching the decease of the great 
commander. 

In answer to several calls, General Loring spoke tenderly of the 
time when, shoulder to shoulder, Grant and he had fought at Santa 
Anna; sorrowfully of the sad years when they confronted one 
another as foes, and gratefully of the reconstruction times, when 
Grant proved the South's noblest friend. Concluding, the General 
said: — " I have known General Grant as a boy, I have rejoiced in 
him as a comrade, respected him as a foe. At home or abroad, as 
a traveler in Egypt or as the occupant of the White House, he was 
always the same — a noble gentleman, a valiant soldier and a true 
friend— and as such he is mourned from the Potomac to the 
Rio Grande." 

THE RESOLUTIONS. 

The following resolutions were then read and immediately 
adopted : 

Resolved, That, with the deepest sympathy and unabating solicitude, we 
have watched from the beginning the progress and fatal termination of the 
painful disease which has closed the career of General U. S. Grant, and that we 
mingle our sincere and profound sorrow with that of this entire Union. 

Resolved, That, as Southern soldiers, we can never forget the delicate 
courtesy with which General Grant opened negotiations with General Lee, and 
the honorable terms accorded to the Southern army at Appomattox, and that 
in these we recognize the magnanimity of the great conqueror and the kindly 
instinct of a noble hero. 



734 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



Resolved, That we recall with grateful emotions the lofty bearing of General 
Grant as exhibited in the decisive promptness with which, in the midst of 
personal and political animosities engendered by the war, he interposed the 
influence of his high office and the broader shield and more commanding 
authority of his great character to prevent the arrest of General Lee, the be- 
loved and illu^^trious commander of the Southern army. 

Resolved, That to the family of General Grant we tender our heartfelt 
sympathies' in this their great bereavement and irreparable loss. 

The following is the memorial : — 

" His mortal passing away we deplore. Duty, as he and we respectively saw 
it, found us opposed as foes in arms. Peace made us friends. In overcoming 
our power in battle, by his greatness in war and magnanimity in victory, he 
won the fortune beyond the reach of bayonet thrust and cannon ball, the 
noblest triumph. . , ^ • 

" His words of kindly remembrance and peaceful parting, so befitting a great 
spirit on the eve of its immortal flight, will be cherished in the noblest 
sanctuary of our memory. As it was peace and good will to us and ours, so 
let it be peace and good will to them and theirs, great General, now and 

evermore. , , , -t 

" For his country he lived, and he received the highest honors, both military 
and civil, which that country could bestow. His passing away, while a 
national bereavement, will render more lustrous his grand achievements as a 
soldier and statesman, and doubly endear him to the hearts of his grateful 
countrymen." 

It was decided that General Gordon should appoint a representa- 
tive from every Southern State to participate in the funeral proces- 
sion, and it was suggested that ex-Confederates desiring so to do, 
could march in the parade along with the Lee Post, of Richmond, 
to v.'hich space has already been allotted in the column. 

Mrs. Grant, on Friday, received the following cable despatch 

from the King of Siam : — 

" Bankok, August 4. 
" To Mrs. Grant, Mt. McGregor, N. Y. :— 

" I learn with deepest regret of the death of General Grant. You will be 
assured that your grief for the severe loss you have sustained is shared by me in 
this extremity of the earth, which the General has honored by a visit, and I 
pray that Providence will bestow his blessing upon the late and lamented 

General's family. 

" Chulalonkorn, Rex. Siam. 

Mrs. Grant also received from the Lyon Relief Corps, G. A. R., 
of California, a wreath of flowers and a series of sympathetic 
resolutions. Early in the day came a despatch from Burnside 
Post, G. A. R., of Tombstone, A. T., embodying the resolutions of 
regret passed by that organization. 



lers 



CHAPTER XXXI. 

CLOSING SCENES IN NEW YORK CITY. 

Hundred Thousands Paying the Last Tribute to the Dead Soldier— Statesmen, Sold 
and Citizens Flocking to the Metropolis— Sheridan and Gordon clasp hands in 
kindly Greeting— Words of Sympathy from Texas— Vice-President Thomas A. 
Hendricks praises the dead hero— Eulogy of General Longstreet— Walt. Whitman 
on Grant— Another day of homage to the great Soldier— More than 250,000 persons 
view the honored remains— The coffin closed forever— Watched and guarded by old 
comrades. 

On the morning of Thursday, the 6th of August, before day- 
break, when the iron gates of the City Hall were opened, about 
fifteen hundred persons had congregated on the street, and a force 
of 150 policemen found it no easy task to keep the crowd in good 
order. There was a disposition to rush, which was immediately 
checked. The line was properly formed and the inspection began. 
All kinds of people made their appearance from early morning until 
midnight. They were not allowed many seconds in which to look, 
for at times 150 people passed by the casket in a single minute. 
It was interesting to note that in the early hours of the day a vast 
preponderance of the on-lookers were working men and women. 
They came so fast, passing along at the rate of 150 a minute, that 
the procession became a quick step. Now and then a man would 
stop as though he would like to catch more than a glance, but he 
was hurriedly pushed along by the policemen and the ev^er ready 
hands of the other guards, as well as by the impetus of the crowds 
behind him. Meanwhile the officers of the Twenty-second regiment, 
who had been on duty through the early morning, marched out 
of the City Hall. They were going home and their places were 
taken by the officers of the Twelfth regiment. The Grant Post had 
mounted a detail at five o'clock, to serve from that hour until eight 
o'clock. They were under the command of D. L. Staples. 

A negro, with his little boy, came in. The child was too small 
to see into the coffin, and the father lifted him so that he could. 
The child's toes came in contact with the dais, to the horror and 
anger of the body-guard. A little bootblack, with his box on his 
shoulder, appeared. His face shone, and his hair had been freshly 
wet and smoothed out at the fountain. Many women also came 
to cause delay. They wished to examine every detail, even the 
flowers, with the utmost closeness. Men and boys and wan-faced 
women, with lunch-baskets and dinner-pails, filed along. The hour 

(735) 



736 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

from six to seven o'clock was occupied by working men and 
women, boys and girls, in viewing the body. They were on their 
way. to work, the day was young, and their opportunity better than 
at any other hour. All through the hour the formation of the line 
was at a point near the fountain, and the time of waiting was not 
more than ten minutes from that point to the place where the coffin 
rested. After seven o'clock the character of the line changed. 
There were fewer women and girls. They had gone through and 
were at work when the line began to lengthen. At eight o'clock 
there was another change taking place in the formation of the line. 
The laborers had gone, and the clerks coming down town were 
stepping from elevated and surface cars into the stream that was 
moving them at the rate of one hundred and ten and one hundred 
and twenty each minute. The police were reinforced at eight 
o'clock. Details under sergeants and roundsmen had been arriving 
and reporting to Inspector Steers from seven o'clock. At eight 
o'clock there were four hundred and eighty-seven men on duty. 
The channel, with walls of police, was extended in "Y" shape 
around the sides of the fountain-circle, which, like a hopper, re- 
ceived the people. Thence they were straightened out in lines of 
twos and threes up to the City Hall steps. The guards at the cof- 
fin were hastening the people; one hundred and fifty a minute were 
being hurried through. The hands on the clock-dials marked nine 
o'clock. The fountain circle was no longer the point of formation 
of the line. Every car and train coming down town added its 
quota to those anxious to look upon the face of General Grant. 

In the early morning it was cool ; the forenoon found it warm ; 
and in the early hours of the afternoon the heat became intense ; 
but that passed away, and in the evening the calm placidity of the 
night — itself an attraction to those whose occupation kept them in 
the house all day — found scores of thousands waiting their turn to 
say good-by. 

But it was a busy da^' with others than those who sought to 
gratify their curiosity or to drop possibly a tear upon the coffin of 
the dead. General Hancock was in consultation with General 
Shaler, Colonel Jones, General Aspinwall and others, while officers 
charged with details in connection with the procession, the march, 
the reception at Riverside and the burial ceremonies, were hard at 
it from early morning until late at night. 

At the head of one line of the visitors, when the gates were 
opened, was a little woman who led two boys by the hand. She 
was so anxious that the children should obtain a good view of the 
face that, the crowd not being very great at the time, she was per- 
mitted to linger by the coffin-side for a minute. The other line 
also had at its head a woman, alone, middle-aged and tearful. 




THE GREAT COMMANDER LYING IN STATE IN THE CITY HALL. N. Y. 



CLOSING SCENES IN NEW YORK CITY. ^ I'] 

Then followed ail sorts of people — young, old, good-looking, ugly, 
robust and weak, healthy and sickly-looking. A continuous, 
changing kaleidoscope of humanity, startling in its contrasts and 
presenting an intensely-interesting picture for the student of human 
nature. In that passing multitude there were many faces that 
looked down upon the drawn features of him who had suffered so 
much, which themselves had plainly written on them the story of 
sickness, sorrow and pain. 

One stout woman tried to leisurely inspect the floral pillow at 
the foot of the coffin, but was unceremoniously passed along the 
corridor. The guards kept repeating the admonition to " Step 
along, now;" and, this failing of the desired effect, they accelerated 
the movements of the lingerers by a gentle or vigorous shove, as 
the case might warrant. Until about half past seven o'clock, a.m., 
the pressure was slight. After that the line of spectators began to 
stretch out. The number of children in the ranks was noticeably 
large. They and their guardians delayed progress somewhat; but 
the presence of the little ones made the scene all the more memo- 
rable and affecting. 

At half-past ten the crowd was rushing through the corridors of 
the City Hall at the rate of 170 a minute. By eleven o'clock it was 
calculated that over 30,000 people had passed. The light reflected 
on the thick plate glass made it almost impossible to obtain a good 
view of the features. Between noon and one o'clock about one 
hundred people were p:issing the casket every minute. Among the 
passers by at this time were the members of the Board of Aldermen. 
At three P. M., it was estimated that 53,000 people had passed the 
remains since the opening of the gates. All the rest of the after- 
noon the crowd increased in size. At six o'clock the crush was at 
its height. The total number of visitors since morning was esti- 
mated at 67,000. 

As the sun was sinking beneath the Western sky and twilight 
was beginning to spread its broad mantle on the great city, the elec- 
tric lights were lit in the City Hall and surrounding park. There 
was a sudden transformation scene. Their quick and dazzling fl ish 
gave the bright effulgence of noonday to the hall of death. During 
the day the lights near the catafalque had been raised. The effeot 
was to dispel the shadows, whose flickering had rendered it d fficult 
to get a clear view of the features of the dead chieftain. Under the 
changed lights each characteristic of that grand face was brought 
out in distinct relief In bolder outline — a preraphaelite picture 
sadly imposing in its strangely weird character — were presented the 
forms and faces of the guards of honor, unwearied in their long 
vigils. Added beauty was also given to the floral display, and the 
fragrance of a sweeter perfume seemed to fill the air. 
47 



JXS LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Still the throngs kept pouring through to look upon the lifeless 
but loved face. The scene in the park was one of strange and mar- 
vellous picturesqueness. Nothing like it has ever been witnessed 
in this city before. Excepting the narrow passage way in front for 
the advance of the crowds the vast esplanade was kept clear by the 
police, who guided the pilgrim visitors on their way up the steps 
and by the catafalque. 

The evening throng was more complex even than those of the 
day— a medley of all classes and all conditions and all ages. They 
continued to pass by in the same order and with no diminution in 
numbers. Large numbers of members of different Grand Army 
posts came with the procession. Among these were the members 
of the E.S.Daken Post,No.2o6, who came with their wives and chil- 
dren and their drum corps of fourteen boys. Major General Moli- 
neux, commanding the Second Division, National Guard, with his 
staff, was also among the evening visitors. By eight o'clock P. M. 
it was estimated that 80,000 persons had passed the catafalque, and 
at ten P. M. the number was placed at 92,000. At times they were 
hurried by with such rapidity that only the slightest possible glance 
could be obtained of General Grant's face. 

At midnight the line stretched up Broadway to Broome street, 
and when the iron gates of the City Hall were closed at one A M. 
•it still wound around through Chambers street and up Broadway to 
Duane street. 

SHERIDAN AND GORDON CLASPING HANDS. 

" On Thursday it looked like old war times at the hotels in New 
York. Great crowds of strangers arrived on every train and boat 
in anticipation of the funeral pageant. All the cabs in the city 
were unable to supply the demand for transportation. Rustic-look- 
ing couples walked along Broadway and other prominent streets, 
staring in the shop windows and admiring the mourning decorations 
on the fronts of the buildings. 

** But it was in the hotel lobbies that the most extraordinary as- 
semblages gathered, and friends of twenty-five years ago who were 
made enemies by the war, shook hands and made it all up. Some 
of the scenes between the soldiers of the North and South were 
heart-stirring, and there were groupings of grand old figures on all 
sides. 

'* There was a perfect picture gallery of celebrated faces in the 
corridor of the Fifth Avenue Hotel. Senator John A. Logan strode 
up and down the marble floor, twisting his black mustache thought- 
fully. Vice President Arthur's rosy face beamed upon a little fat 
colonel from the West, who insisted upon saluting everybody who 
passed. Colonel Mike Sheridan trotted about anxiously in search 



CLOSING SCENES IN NEW YORK CITY. 739 

of a friend and Colonel George W. Davis walked a few feet behind 
Quartermaster General Van Vleet. Senator William M. Evarts 
wandered around for a while, looking- lean and lonely until he met 
Senator Morrill, of Vermont. General Thomas L. James leaned 
familiarly against a post and chatted withSergeant-at-Arms Chrystie, 
of the United States Senate, and on his right stood General Merritt, 
of West Point, talking over old memories of Grant. Then there 
was ex-President Hayes, brown-bearded and smiling, with a piece 
of manuscript in his hand and a red button on his lapel ; Senator 
Warner Miller, burly and warm of hand ; sharp-eyed Smith M. 
Weed ; bluff old Governor Eaton, of Colorado, and ex-Senator 
Page, of Ohio. Lieutenant Emery, of the Greely expedition, chewed 
a toothpick in front of Naval Officer Burt, and General Rufus In- 
galls sauntered about in a group composed of General Joseph B. 
Carr, gray and spectacled ; ex Lieutenant Governor John C Rob- 
inson, on crutches, and Congressman Burleigh. Colonel Richards, 
of Mobile, an old Southern soldier, stood close by. 

In the midst of all this scene stood General Phil. Sheridan. Sud- 
dently a red faced man advanced, leading General John B. Gordon, 
toward the Union soldier. Then he introduced him of Georgia, and 
the two old warriors seized hands with a firm grip and looked each 
other fair in the eyes. Then their hands trembled, but they did not re- 
lease the friendly grasp, but stood there looking at each other with 
sparkling eyes General Belknap, the ex-Secretary of War, came 
up with General Curtis, the one-eyed conqueror of Fort Fisher, and 
formed a part of the group. It was a picture worthy of a great 
painter as the Southern general, tall, black-eyed, long-haired and 
scarred, pressed the hand of the famous soldier of the North. 

The two men laughed and chatted, and all the while their hands 
never once parted from the hearty clasp. 

Oh, human heart ! Oh, loving-kindness and forgiveness ! After 
all these years of bitterness the blue and gray are one again. 

"This is how the soldiers of the North and South meet to-day," 
said General Curtis. " God grant that it is only an emblem of what 
is coming to the whole country." 

In the Hoffman House there were other scenes, but they were 
all alike Governor Hill and General Farnsworth chatted at the 
door of the hotel, while Senators Coggeshall and Murphy recalled 
old fighting times in the lobby. Colonel F. E. Greene, of Virginia, 
walked through the main corridor and saluted two or three old 
friends. By midnight the hotel was full. 

Colonel Betts, of Tennessee, said last evening to a friend: " Did 
you see Gordon and Sheridan shaking hands in the Fifth Avenue 
Hotel ? Never expected to see such friendship between such men. 
The old bitterness died with Grant. He offered himself as a sacrifice 



740 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

of reconciliation for the good of the whole country, God bless him. 
Yes, he was a great man, a good man, and his memory will be 
kept green all over the South." 

Tiij Thompson Street colored people were in commotion over 
th^ pfjoarations for th^ funeral. " Oh, we's heard his big guns up 
de nbber in de war. Dey sounded like guns of liberty for the 
whole world. And dey made more noise de second day dan dey 
did (Ml de fust, and a heap louder booming on de next. Den all was 
like tiie grave, and dar was blood and pale faces everywhar in old 
Varginia. Grant did it. And now we're gwine to his funeral and 
ask de Lord to bless his spirit shore." 

SYMPATHY FROM TEXAS. 

The ex- Confederate reunion meeting at Fort Worth, Texas, on 
the 5th day of August, appointed a committee of five to draft reso- 
lutions on the death of General Grant, which were unanimously 
adopted amid thunders of applause. 

The resolutions read as follows : 

Whereas the ex Confederate and Union soldiers here assembled 
have learned, with regret, of the death of General U. S. Grant, there- 
fore be it 

Rjso/ved, "First, that the nation has lost an able officer, who won a world 
wide reputation and shed lustre on American arms ; second, that we extend 
our heartfelt sympathy and condolence to his bereaved family.'' 

The resolutions were telegraphed to Mrs. Grant. 

General Gano, of Dallas, then delivered an address, in which he 
spoke of the bravery of the soldiers on both sides, and asserted that 
if the politicians had kept their hands off perfect peace would have 
been established long ago. He paid a high tribute to the memory 
of General Grant and gloried in him as an American soldier. 

General George W. S:Tiith delivered a thrilling speech. He 
exulted in the peace prevailing between the sections, in the re- 
esta!)lishment of the Union, paid a glowing tribute to the character 
and attainments of General Grant, and portrayed in eloquent lan- 
gu ige the dying hero's desire for the good-will and affection of the 
Southern people. 

Other speakers dwelt upon the character and service of Grant in 
a similar strain. 

At a reunion of ex-Confederate soldiers, held at Greenville, Texas, 
on thi 5th day of Augiist, it WIS estinited that 20,333 veterans and 
others were on the grounds. At the close of General Ross' ad- 
dress the following was unanimously adopted : 

/»' ohjed, " That \\\*, the surviving^ members of Ross' Brigade, Rector's Bri- 
gad<*. Maxey's Bri.c^.ide. Graham's Briorade, the Eleventh Cavalry of Texas, 
and unattached Confederates and Union soldiers, numbering about 10,000 men, 
in this our annual leunion, held at Greenville, Texas, express our deep and 



CLOSING SCENES IN NEW YORK CITY. 741 

heartfelt regret at the sad news of the death of that illustrious soldier and 
patriotic statesman, U. S. Grant, whose remains now lie in state in New York • " 
and, ' 

Resolved, " That we tender to the heart-broken widow and family of the 
deceased our warmest sympathy in this the sad hour of their bereavement ;" and. 

Resolved, " That these resolutions be telegraphed to the family of Gen.' Gi ant 
by the President of this association.'' 

MR. HENDRICKS PRAISES GRANT. 

Vice-President Thomas A. Hendricks, on the 6th of August, 
accompanied by Mrs. Hendricks, passed through Chicago on his 
way to New York to take part in the Grant obsequies. "I have 
been at Ashland and up around Lake Superior with Mrs. Hen- 
dricks for a fortnight," said Mr. Hendricks. "I heard of General 
Grant's death with a feeling of deep sorrow. I always had a hif^h 
regard for General Grant as a man and great admiration for his 
ability as a soldier and statesman. He was the greatest man of his 
time— always composed, firm and self-reliant in battle, in high 
places of responsibility, and even up to the moment of his death. 
He never made a speech, even if but one or two lines in length, 
that was not full of wisdom, and whatever he said was effective and 
held the attention of the public." 

grant's early days. 

" He was the truest as well as the bravest man I ever knew," was 
the remark of General James Longstreet, as soon as he recovered 
from his emotion on being informed of the death of General Grant. 
"A man of unbounded confidence in human nature, with the 
greatest sense of modesty, and utterly without guile, the one great 
American of the present age who will live in history as typifying 
the best elements of manhood. As passion cools and prejudice 
clears away, and politicians are relegated to obscurity, then the 
figure of Grant will stand out in bold relief, second only to that of 
Washington." 

General Longstreet lives in a large two-story fi-ame house, set in 
the midst of a grove near Gainsville, Georgia. Upon the airy porch 
of his country mansion, his cheeks fanned by the southern breeze, 
his form enveloped in a dressing-gown, General Longstreet enjoys 
the peaceful days which have little in them to recall the memory of 
the trenches on the well-fought fields between Washington and 
Richmond. His form, once so erect and soldierly, and the appear- 
ance of which was wont to be greeted with cheers by the brave 
boys in gray as he rode down the line, is now bulky and bowed; 
but his eyes still have the same look of dogged determination as in 
the days when they refused to see defeat and snatched victory from 
the very despair of desperation. When your correspondent found 
him he was examining his grape-vines, and looked for the world 



742 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

like the good old countryman who never looked upon a field of 
carnage. Passing his hand over his forehead, as if in painful medita- 
tion, he made use of the words with which this sketch was opened. 
" i well remember the delicate and fragile form of the boy who, 
in 1839, answered to the roll-call when the name of Grant was 
repeated. We were a boisterous set who filled the classes that 
year, and my physique and exuberance of spirit led me to be 
among the leaders of every sport and diversion. The delicate 
stranger was not of our mold; his build and his want of strength 
did not warrant his becoming one of our unruly gang. Instead of 
forming for him the dislike so apt to be entertained for one not 
given to manly sports, we grew to admire his modesty, his manli- 
ness and the evident spirit which was at the bottom of his char- 
acter. In one trait, however, he excelled. He was the most daring 
horseman in the whole command, and the wonder has often been 
expressed that he did not gravitate into the cavalry branch of the 
service. In 1842 I graduated and was assigned to duty as second 
lieutenant in the 4th Infantry, then stationed at Jefferson Barracks, 
twtlve miles from St. Louis. The year following, 1843, Grant fol- 
lowed, and was attached to the same regiment. 

''These early days," said Longstreet, as he he settled in the great 
easy chair which stood on his front porch, while the reporter threw 
himself on the banister railings, '* recall a delightful period. As I 
think over the names, how many have risen to fame, how many 
have failed, how many have gone beyond, by war and death in 
other forms, until now, the one who became the greatest of all has 
passed to his rest. Thus it is with humanity." " Well," said he, 
" to return to our subject. Lieut. Grant's distinguishing trait at 
that time was his simple performance of duty, without show of 
authority or offensive manner, and his scrupulous regard for the 
feelings of others. So perfect was his sense of honor that in the 
numerous cabals that were often formed his name was never men- 
tioned, for he never did anything which could be made subject of 
criticism or reproach. Grant confided in me, perhaps, more than 
any other officer in the barracks. On one occasion, meeting Grant 
coming out of the barracks, I said to him : 

'* ' Grant, I wish you would come with me on a visit to a kins- 
man.' 

** He readily assented. When we reached the mansion of my 
kinsman we were heartily received, and the family were introduced 
one by one, as they returned from their daily duties. At last the 
musical voice of a young woman was heard in the hall, and an 
instant later the lady was in the room. 

" ' Miss Julia Dent,' said I, as I took my pretty kinswoman's 
hand, and she blushed deeply as she bowed to Lieut. Grant. 



CLOSING SCENES IN NEW YORK CITY. 743 

" A little later Cadet Fred. Dent entered, and while I engaged 
liim in conversation, in which the old people joined, Lieut. Grant 
and Miss Julia were forming the ties, the last chapter of which may 
be seen in the weeping widow now bending over the dead body of 
her husband in New York city. After that day Miss Julia Dent 
was one of the most frequent dancers at our military balls. It is 
only a few months ago that Mrs. Grant recalled to me a story of 
that period, showing how they used to tease her about the youno- 
lieutenant. On one occasion she went to one of the balls under the 
escort of some other officer, when it was noticed that Lieut Grant 
was absent. Lieut. Hoskins, with a most doleful expression on his 
face, went up to her and asked : 

" ' Miss Julia, where is that little man with the large epaulettes ?.* 
*' This caused a smile at the expense of the young lady, but she 
clung to her young lieutenant, and in 1848 they were married. I 
had been married just six months at that time myself, and, as the 
one who had originally introduced the couple, was an honored 
guest upon the occasion." 

WALT. WHITMAN ON GRANT. 

When a visitor spoke the name of Grant, Walt Whitman bowed 
his head as the whole nation has bowed beneath a common grief. 
When at last the poet spoke it was in the tone of one who has lost 
a dear friend, yet he pondered his words and weighed each sentence 
carefully. 

" Yes," said he, '* I, too, am willing and anxious to bear testimony 
to the departed general. Now that Grant is dead it seems to me I 
may consider him as one of those examples or models for the peo- 
ple and character-formation of the future, age after age — always to 
me the most potent influence of a really distinguished character — 
greater than any personal deeds or life, however important they 
may have been. I think General Grant will stand the test perfectly 
through coming generations. True, he had no artistic or poetical 
element ; but he furnished the concrete of those elements for ima- 
ginative use, perhaps beyond any man of the age. He was not the 
finely painted portrait itself, but the original of the portrait. What 
we most need in America are grand individual types, consistent 
with our own genius. The west has supplied two superb native 
illustrations in Lincoln and Grant. Incalculable as their deeds 
were for the practical good of the nation for all time, I think their 
absorption into the future as elements and standards will be the 
best part of them. 

" Washington and all those noble early Virginians were, strictly 
speaking, English gentlemen of the royal era of Hampden, Pym 
and Milton, and such it was best that they were for their day and 



744 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



purposes. No breath of mine shall ever tarnish the bright, eternal 
gold of their fame. But Grant and Lincoln are entirely native on 
our own model, current and western. The best of both is their 
practical, irrefragable proof of radical democratic institutions — that 
it is possible for any good average American farmer or mechanic 
to be taken out of the ranks of the common millions and put in the 
position of severest military or civic responsibility and fully justify 
it all for years, through thick and thin. I think this the greatest 
lesson of our national existence so far. 

" Then," added the poet, *' the incredible romance of Grant's 
actual career and life ! In all Homer and Shakespeare there is no 
fortune or personality really more picturesque or rapidly changing, 
more full of heroism, pathos, contrast." 

Warming to his subject, the poet had voiced his estimate of 
Grant with a spontaneous fervor none the less eloquent because it 
was thoughtfully and critically spoken. Then, with one of his 
benign smiles, he said :' " Let me give you, in this connection, the 
little sonnet I wrote originally for Harpers :"* 

As one by one withdraw the lofty actors 

From that great plav on history's stage eterne, 

That lurid, partial act of war and peace— of old and new contending, 

Fought out through wrath, fears, dark dismays, and many a long suspense ; 

All past— and since, in countless graves receding, mellowing, 

Victors and vanquish'd— Lincoln's and Lee's— now thou with them, 

Man of the mighty days— and equal to the days ! 

Thou from the prairies !— tangled and many-veined and hard has been thy 

part, 
To admiration has it been enacted ! 

SCENES ON FRIDAY. 

The scene in and around the City Hall on Friday was, with the 
exception of a few minor circumstances of little importance, but a 
repetition of that enacted the preceding day. The same long, 
serpentine line of surging humanity kept sending those in the van 
up the steps of the building to pay their silent homage to the dead 
hero. In the gloomy corridor the guard of honor of the Grand 
Army Post named in honor of the warrior who will fight no more 
battles, the members of the National Guard and the polidemen 
were in the same positions they had occupied Wednesday, while at 
the head of the bier stood a solitary member of the Loyal Legion, 
as motionless as a wax figure. All through the day the stream of 
people kept flowing into the building past the catafalque and out 
into the park again with a monotony that would have been tire- 
some could the object of their mission have been forgotten. The 
visitors were as numerous, if not more so, than on the preceding 
day, and it was estimated that about 125,000 persons had viewed 
the body at i o'clock on Saturday morning when the last persons 



k 



CLOSING SCENES IN NEW YORK CITY. 745 

left the building. More than a quarter of a milHon of persons 
have viewed the remains during those three memorable days. 

When the gates of the building were closed on Thursday, they 
shut out thousands of persons anxious to take a last look. Many 
of them returned to their homes, while others took possession of 
the benches in the park, determined to wait until morning, when 
they could be first in line and be sure to be admitted. 

It wanted but a few minutes of 6 o'clock when Junior Vice- 
Commander Cranston, of the U. S. Grant Post, removed the lid 
from the casket, and the minute the iron gates were thrown open^ 
the people began to move, allowing the first on the line to ascend 
the white marble steps. The first to view the body was a woman, 
as was also the case Thursday. From this time until the closing 
of the gates the tide never ebbed for an instant, but incessantly it 
poured by the catafalque. 

Two hours after the opening of the gates a detachment from the 
Seventh Regiment filed into the building to act as a guard of 
honor to the body. 

During the afternoon the Grand Jury filed by the casket in a 
body, with Inspector Steers at their head. Mayor Joseph E. 
Haynes, of Newark, with the Common Council, Board of Educa- 
tion and municipal authorities of that city, numbering about 
seventy-five, all wearing badges of mourning, viewed the remains in 
a body, as did also the officers and Executive Committee of the 
Grand Lodge of the Order of Kesher Shel Barzel. Ex-Licut-Gov. 
John C. Robinson, of this State, entered by a private door and took 
a look at the body. 

Many elaborate floral tributes were placed in the corridor near 
the body during the latter part of the day. The handsome piece, 
representing the " Gates Ajar," was placed at the head of the cata- 
falque and was much admired. It had been sent by the members 
of the Stock Exchange, and a card bore the inscription : 

j FROMTHE MEMBERS t 

X OF THE + 

I NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE, f 

j . ■! ] , M I ! I ! M I ! ■^ ! ■■-i"^-{-H-4— i-^"i"}"H' I !■ I 1 - +-}"H"f-l"<--f"f 

On a stand near one of the draped pillars was an immense wreath 
of Marechal Niel roses and ivy, a heavy purple ribbon attached to 
which bore the name of the departed soldier. A large pillow of 
immortelles bearing the words " Galena," had been sent by the 
citizens of Galena, 111. 

The city of San Francisco sent by express a beautiful memorial 



740 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

of Grant, consisting of a square of dark purple velvet on which at 
the top was the figure of a miniature bear in gold, representing the 
arms of the State of California, and at each of the four corners 
miniature bears in silver. Across the middle of the square was the 
emblazoned inscription " California," and at the bottom, also in 
miniature letters, " In Memoriam U. S. Grant." 

The remains of General Grant were forever closed from view 
at nineteen minutes past i o'clock on the morning of August 8th. 
When all the citizens had left the City Hall and the policemen had 
taken a look into the bier the members of the G. A. R. with a 
solemn step formed in line and passed by the casket. Each one 
lingered as long as possible and reluctantly turned their gaze from 
the face of their old commander. As the last one passed he stood 
for several moments as if petrified and tears rolled down his face. 

At the Fifth Avenue Hotel a crowd gathered all day. When 
General Sherman stepped from a carriage at the door the crowd 
formed about him. Colonel Fred. Grant left his room shortly be- 
fore 7 o'clock to get a breath of air. He had not proceeded half 
a block vv^hen the crowd closed about him and insisted on shaking 
hands. He was obliged to give up his walk and retired to his room. 

All day Friday the Grant family was pressed for interviews by 
hundreds of curious visitors. When told that the family did not care 
to receive callers many attempted to force their way to the rooms. 
It was. found necessary to station a porter to keep back the visi- 
tors. They had left the hotel but once since their arrival. This 
was on Friday when the whole party took a short drive to River- 
side Park. The family took their meals in a private dining hall 
near their apartments. They were joined on Friday, at dinner, by 
ex-President Hayes, Senator Chaffee and Senor Romero, Minister 
from Mexico. The latter had placed himself at the service of the 
family and remained with them until their departure for Mount 
McGregor. 

Mrs. Fred. Grant, Mrs. Jesse Grant and Mrs. U. S. Grant, Jr., 
with Mrs. Sartoris, made up the party of ladies who occupied the 
family apartments at the hotel. It was intended that these ladies 
should occupy carriages in the funeral procession, and were to 
immediately follow the funeral car. But since Mrs. Grant could 
not be present at the exercises it was decided that the ladies should 
not join the procession. Carriages were provided for the sons of 
the General. 

The various delegations, staffs and organizations had established 
headquarters in the parlors about the hotel. General Sherman 
held an informal reception in the upper corridor shortly after dinner. 
After a large number of ladies had been presented and had retired, 
a great many old army veterans grasped the General's hand. 



CHAPTER XXXII. 

BORNE TO HIS REST. 

The Last Rites— The Obsequies of General Grant— A Noble and Worthy Tribute to the 
Great Warrior— Hancock Leads the Advance— The Blue and the Gray United- 
Virginia and Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Georgia March Together- Sunrise at 
Riverside— The Start of the Cortege— Funeral Song— Clergymen and Pall-hearers— 
The United States Troops and the State Militia— The President and Party— The 
Catafalque— The Grand Army of the Republic and the Civic Societies— Arrival at 
the Tomb— Impressive Burial Services— The Hero has Found His Rest at Last. 
On Saturday, the eighth of August, the remains of General and 
Ex-President U. S. Grant, the most renowned American citizen of 
his time, were removed to their resting-place in Riverside Park, 
near New York City. The funeral solemnities on the banks of the 
Hudson River were attended by an assemblage of his countrymen 
far greater than has ever been brought together on any similar 
occa'sion. The ceremonies were not confined to the city of mter- 
ment alone ; the day was marked by solemn observances m most 
American communities, and by a general cessation of busmess 
throughout the whole country. There were no factitious elements 
about these mournful tributes of regard and regret. No movement 
of popular feeling was ever more spontaneous and genuine. It was 
true homage to a man who did service of infinite value to his 
country, and who brought great qualities to the performance of 

p"reat deeds 

Few men have achieved such success or have been the principal 
actors in events that made so deep an impress on the history of 
millions of men. His service to the country as the most successful 
general of the armies in the life and death struggle of that country 
for existence, made him President of the United States withm eight 
years from the time when he was an unknown clerk m a tannery 
of a country town. His Presidential period of eight years wa. only 
less eventful than the four years of the civil war. When General 
Grant retired from the Presidency he left the government of he 
United States in a more influential place in the estimation of the 
rest of the world than it had ever occupied before. 

The participation of eminent Confederate soldiers in the ceremo- 
nials meant that these men and those whom they represent ente- 
tained for General Grant during his life a '^f^^'^.^'/ZZl with 
was outspoken; that they esteemed themselves, in ^°"^";°" J"^} 
their brethren of the North, the inheritors of Grant s glory and of 

(747) 



748 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

the fruits of his victories, and that the nation's loss is their loss in 
the fullest possible measure. Close upon a quarter of a century 
ago General S. B. Buckner — meanly deserted at Fort Donelson by 
the men who had led him into taking up arms against the United 
States Government, and who should have borne the onus of defeat 
— permitted himself, in a bitter moment, to characterize Grant's 
demand for an unconditional surrender as unchivalric. Buckner 
was one of Grant's pall-bearers, for he fully appreciated not only 
the real chivalry which was one of the strong qualities of the man 
to whom he surrendered at Fort Donelson that sad winter-day 
long ago, but the real merits of the idea which Grant represented 
on that occasion. For this man and for Joseph E. Johnston to 
stand by the bier of Grant side by side with William T. Sherman, 
Philip H. Sheridan, David D. Porter, and other eminent represent- 
atives of Union sentiment during the civil war, convey a lesson 
that cannot possibly be misunderstood by the thoughtful people of 
the North, the South, the East, the West. It means that the results 
for which the war was fought, and for the sake of which alone it 
was worth fighting, have been absolutely, completely and unalter- 
ably achieved; that the war, and the contentions which led to it, 
are closed issues; and that from now, henceforth and forever, it 
will be useless for unscrupulous partisans to appeal to the passions 
of the war for the furtherance of their personal and unpatriotic 
ends. 

The participation of these ex-Confederates in the funeral cere- 
monies would be a small thing in itself, did it not so evidently 
represent Southern sentiment. But from every part of the South 
the expressions of respect for the memory of Grant have been as 
hearty and as evidently sincere as it could possibly be asked that 
they should be. The terms which Grant gave to Lee at Appo- 
mattox, and especially his simple suggestion that the surrendered 
men should keep their horses, as they would need them for their 
spring ploughing, appealed, in the most direct manner, to the best 
Southern sentiment; and whatever he did at Appomattox towards 
making his victory a moral as well as a physical one, he still more 
became in Southern eyes the embodiment of a true chivalry when, 
later on, he brought the weight of his official and personal influ- 
ence to bear to prevent the prosecution of prominent Confederates 
and to maintain the inviolability of the promises which he made to 
Lee. 

General Grant was a great soldier. He was great not only in 
his ability to handle huge bodies of men, but in his clear under- 
standing of the character of the struggle in which he was engaged, 
and of the means necessary for bringing it to an entirely satisfac- 
tory conclusion. It was fortunate, for many reasons, that the GoV' 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 749 

ernment and its supporters had the services of such a man when 
the time came for striking the last blows at the RebeUion. 

In grateful acknowledgment of his great services and of his 
worth as a soldier, a man and a citizen, his countrymen honored 
him by the grandest and most imposing obsequies America ever 
saw. 

The following poem is an expression of the feeling w^hich per- 
iraded the whole nation, North and South, East and West : 

HIS LAST TRIUMPH. 

Furl all the flags and muffle all the drums ! 
Back to the home he loved the hero comes, 

Not as the victor at the head 

Of armies he has often led, 
Nor panoplied for war, nor laurel-crowned, 
Nor greeted by the cannons' thund'rous sound. 

Or by the rapturous acclaim 

Of thousands who repeat his name, 
Nor, as he left us last, in mortal pain, 
His steps supported by his crutch or cane, 

But silently, so silently, 

That men may ask, Can this be he ? 

And yet he is a Leader. Grand and vast 
A mightv multitude is marching past, 

And West and East with South and North 

Again have sent their legions forth. 
Who come with reverent mien and solemn tread 
To humbly follow the Commander, dead, 

While standards bright and scarcely worn 

Mingle with those by battle torn. 
And men who with him and against him fought, 
Like brothers, counting now the past as naught, 

Join hands beside the hero's bier; 

Oh, what a wondrous sight is here ! 

This is his triumph, this his joy and pride ; 
For this alone he might have gladly died. 

He ordered war's alarms to cease. 

And brought in pleasant days of peace. 
" Go home," the victor to the vanquished said, 
*'And work for those you love, and mourn your dead!" 

When Death against his spirit strove 

His latest words were words of love. 
Peace holds the Union that he helped to save, 
And severed sections weep above his grave. 

Such is his last and best reward 

Who sheathed his anger with his sword. 

THE LAST REVIEW. 

A more impressive picture than that of General Grant's funeral 
-was never presented to the American people. The day was per- 



750 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

feet, and the arrangements admirable. The prediction of " local 
rain and subsequent clearing weather " was, fortunately, not ful- 
filled. A brief shower at midnight led up to a morning cooled by 
breezes from the bay, so potent as to stir the leaves of all the trees 
at Riverside and through the Park and the few left along the line 
of procession, memorable in all future time as being the route over 
which the most superb pageant, military and civic, known in the 
history of the country, passed on this superb August day. In the 
earliest hours of the morning the city was astir. Thousands of 
men sat on stoops, rested on the curb-stones, loitered in the parks, 
and made populous alt the points of vantage near the rendezvous 
where dignitaries were to meet, sharing the curiosity of the multi- 
tude which crowded about the City Hall concerning the sacred 
burden soon to be brought from its resting-place and taken to its 
last, long home. The hotels of the town were alive. Every 
corridor on every floor was lined with cots, and strangers doubled 
up in all the rooms. There was stir and bustle in every armory 
and at all the points where perfunctory preparations were being 
made for the grand ceremonial of the day. On every road leading 
to the city late trains were run at night and extra trains put on 
early in the morning. There v/as not a horse in all the stables of 
the town whose services were not enlisted. Every driver knew the 
hard day's work before him, and in every home it was distinctly 
understood that early rising, an early breakfast and an early start 
was the programme of the day. 

IN FRONT OF CITY HALL. 

The morning sunshine fell at 8 o'clock, an hour before the pro- 
cession was to start, upon a throng of people surrounding the 
asphalt esplanade road in front of the City Hall. Other streams of 
people, clad in their best garb, poured from the Brooklyn Bridge 
and the ferry-houses to join the throng. Smaller streams filtered 
away at the edges and moved up town, but fnost of the crowd 
waited patiently for the start of the great pageant. Men and boys 
climbed upon the dry granite fountain directly in front of the City 
Hall, and others displayed their agility by perching upon the frail 
iron support about young trees. A group of men found a lofty 
view from the top of the Federal building, and the roofs of the 
other tall buildings in the vicinage were dotted with spectators. 

All alike looked down upon the sun-beaten open plaza, around 
which a line of policemen ran like a blue cord. Here and there a 
detail of policemen would form in line and march away to duty 
elsewhere. 

In the distance there began to beat faintly the pulse of marching 
feet; from some side street swelled now the music of a band, now 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 75 1 

the sound of a drum, and between this vista of buildings and that,, 
through this sunlit space East and that shadowed rift West, between 
tall blocks, could be caught the glitter of brightly polished guns or 
the tossing head of a horse. 

The purple casket had been closed forever, and the dead hero, 
whose face had been gazed upon by acclaiming millions living and 
reverent thousands dead, had been shut away from mortal vision. 
The original guard of honor who escorted the body from Mt. 
McGregor, thirteen members of Grant Post, of Brooklyn, stood like 
statues about the catafalque. The officers of the 22d Regiment 
shared their vigil. No one spoke above a whisper, and those who 
walked moved lightly. The black draperies darkened the morning 
hght, and even a whisper seemed boisterous. Through the tall, 
straight bars of the iron gates floated new murmurs of prepara- 
tion. The time had nearly come for the casket and its unconscious, 
helpless burden to be carried on its last journey. 

Battery place was alive with people at sunrise. Children, women 
and gray-bearded men with umbrellas and lunch baskets sat waiting 
in the shade of the Barge Office, where General Hancock's troops 
were to land. The water sparkled and white sails dotted the bay 
from Stevens' Point to the Narrows. All the street cars were 
packed and every train on the " elevated " roads was loaded to its 
fullest capacity 

Troops were seen embarking at Governor's Island. The big 
black guns on the flower-bordered parapets were silent. Only the 
muffled drum and the plaintive wailing of music broke the stillness 
of the green island. Promptly tugs, steamers and barges reached 
the stone pier with blue jackets, soldiers and musicians. Policemen 
and a military detail kept back the increasing crowd which swarmed 
park and plaza. Officers, men, horses and artillery speedily dis- 
embarked. While the various organizations were preparing to fall 
into line and march General Hancock, with his regular staff, stood 
in front of the Barge Office entrance. 

While guns, bayonets, regimentals and swords were glittering in 
the morning sunlight. General Fitzhugh Lee and Major Smith, of 
his old staff, in civilian's dress, alighted from an " elevated " train. 
They had come to join General Hancock's staff. 

'' Bless me, what are we coming to ? " exclaimed a bronzed veteran, 
"ex-Confederate cavalrymen going with Union major generals to 
pay a last tribute at Grant's tomb ! Well, the war is ended at last." 

The distinguished visiting Southerners were cordially greeted by 
Gen. Hancock and his officers. After salutations and a few moments' 
chat the illustrious company mounted their horses and the march 
began. A squad of police on horseback cleared the street. Then 
came the Major-General and his staff, followed by pioneers with 



752 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

axes and side arms. Next were t}\e battalions of United States 
troops in fresh uniforms, the naval brigade, marine battalion, blue 
jackets, infantry, artillery and National guards, in imposing columns, 
steadily marching to the roll and beat of muffled drums. Immense 
crowds lined the sidewalk ; the crowd continued to increase until 
City Hall Park was reached. By this time Broadway, as far as the 
eye could reach, was filled with troops and spectators. The police 
citrangements were found to be good and Broadway was cleared of 
spectators from curb to curb at an early hour. 

From every side street, to the music of fife and drum, with battle 
fligs draped and bows of crape on the left arm, came the veterans 
of the war and the members of the Grand Army of the Republic. 
The Grand Army posts formed on the west side of Broadway, the 
Department of Pennsylvania having the right of line and its right 
resting on Daane Street. Next came the Department of New York 
and the other departments, and delegations formed from Four- 
teenth Street up nearly to Forty-second Street. Carriages for dis- 
abled soldiers were waiting in Canal Street. 

All the early morning the tramp of soldiers and the mournful 
strains of the regimental bands were heard as the various regiments 
marched to the positions assigned them. The east side of Broadway 
was the scene of the deploy line. When the troops were drawn up 
in line of parade rest they presented an imposing sight. The regi- 
ments of the First division stretched southward down Fifth Avenue 
from Twenty-eighth Street, and the remaining troops continued the 
line down Broadway to the City Hall. At the City Hall there was 
a division of New Jersey National Guards, looking like regulars in 
their uniforms of light and dark blue; the Veteran Zouaves were 
shoulder to shoulder flanked against them. Company D, First 
Minnesota Guard, Captain Bean, with left resting below Grand 
Street, was next in the order of line, with the Capitol City Guards, 
left resting on Grand Street, next. The Union Veteran Corps, 
Captain A. E. Thomason, of the District of Columbia, rested on the 
right of the Capitol City Guards. 

At Broome Street there was a battalion of four companies of 
Virginia State troops and the First regiment of Massachusetts in- 
fantry — two bodies that during the war would have been fighting 
each other to death, but which were now joined iri brotherhood. 
Another similar contrast was next in line — the second regiment of 
Connecticut National Guards, the first regiment of Pennsylvania's 
N itional Guards, below Prince Street, and the Gate City Guards of 
Ailanta, Ga — which, with the two preceding troops, made a picture 
of blue and gray. 

Then came the second division of the State National Guards, left 
resting on Bleeker Street, with companies of veteran guards, com- 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 753 

posed of the race the hero had fought to free, their left resting on 
Eleventh Street. Following them on the way up town were the 
Columbia Guard, the Garibaldi Legion, the Italian Rifle Guard, the 
Columbo Guard, the second company Washington Continental 
Guard, the tenth regiment New York Volunteer Veterans, the 
Veteran Zouave Association and the Veteran Association 165th 
New York Volunteers. The Governor's Foot Guard, Hartford, 
Conn., and the first division of the State National Guards completed 
this front of soldiery. 

The pall-bearers and other distinguished persons met at the Fifth 
Avenue Hotel. Carriages waiting for them were drawn up in 
Twenty-third Street. President Cleveland, accompanied by Secre- 
tary of State Bayard, left his rooms, Nos. 82 and 83 on the third 
floor, at ten o'clock, and the two took seats in the carriage that 
awaited them at the Twenty-third Street entrance. The six bay 
horses which drew it only moved a few feet forward and then waited 
for two hours for the funeral car to pass. The sun poured down so 
fiercely that the President was obliged to leave the carriage after 
half an hour and to wait in the hotel. The spectators took off their 
hats as he passed among them. 

Lieutenant-Colonel Gillespie, the marshal of the Presidential and 
Gubernatorial carriages, had a difficult task before him. There was 
some trouble in getting ex-Presidents Hayes and Arthur placed in 
the proper carriages. Twice they were changed, and at last were . 
seated together in a carriage that stood in front of the Eden Musee. 
At one side of them was Governor Hill's staff, mounted. Vice- 
President Hendricks and his secretary waited in a carriage directly 
in front of the hotel entrance. 

The broad pearl sash of Colonel Gillespie was seen moving care- 
lessly up and down and in and out between the horses, until at last 
the carriages were massed in three lines down the street. Presi- 
dent Cleveland's Cabinet, in five carriages, were on the north side 
of the street. At the other side, drawn together in hopeless con- 
fusion, were a number of carriages containing Mrs. Rawlins Hol- 
man, the daughter of General Grant's old friend and chief of staff; 
the General's old staff and his Cabinet officers, detachments from 
Wheeler and U. S. Grant Posts and survivors of the Mexican War. 
Down the centre line were judges of the Supreme Court, United 
States Senators, with white silk sashes over their shoulders, and the 
House Committee, in a score of carriages. Down near Sixth 
Avenue were the committee of the State Legislature, the members 
of the Cabinets of ex-Presidents Hayes and Arthur, and the diplo- 
matic and consular officers under General Grant. In the lines up 
and down Sixth Avenue were the Governors and their staffs of the 
States of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, 
48 



754 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, Indiana, Illinois, Maine, 
Michigan, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, West Virginia, Colorado 
and Dakota. 

On Twenty-third Street, beyond Sixth Avenue, were the heads 
of the War and Navy Departments, Generals Sheridan and Merritt 
and Admiral Jouett and Commander Chandler and staffs, and a 
large number of federal officers, including the Indian Commis- 
>ioners. 

On Seventh Avenue were the carriages containing th2 Mayors 
of Brooklyn, Boston, St. Louis, Jersey City, New Haven, Hartford, 
Elizabeth, Hudson and Litchfield, Conn., and the Committee of 
One Hundred. 

The rays of the rising sun had not pierced the dampened vapors 
clinging in the air when the boom of morning guns on the fleet 
anchored in the Hudson River, off the bluff at Riverside, gave 
notice of the day's mournful business, and on the six United States 
vessels thenceforth there was bustling life throughout the day. 
Here the first sounds which broke the stillness about the future 
resting place of General Grant's remains were heard. The execu- 
tive officer of each man-of-war gave the order to " cockbill the 
yards." Next came the command, " Stand by your gear !" Then, 
''Sway!" 

At this command, almost in unison, the yards on each vessel were 
dipped, the fore yards to port, the main yards to the starboard side, 
and there made fast. The colors at the peak were dropped to half- 
mast, and the men were " piped down " to don their uniforms of 
mourning. It consisted of a white cape, white jacket and black 
trousers, which were worn throughout the day of the burial. 

In half an hour there came from one of the port-holes of the 
Despatch, which headed the line, a puff of white smoke, followed 
on the instant almost by the roar of the gun. It echoed on the 
high rocky walls of the three-crowned Palisades across the river, 
rolled back and forth and passed away among the distant hills like 
the rumble of reverberating thunder. Thenceforward until ten 
o'clock one gun every half hour measured the passing movement 
of time. When the hour of the departure of the procession from 
City Hall Park arrived the Despatch began firing twenty-one guns 
at intervals of a minute. The Powhatan followed, and each vessel's 
crew took their turn at the cannons, each firing two minute guns 
until the procession arrived. The billows of smoke rolled from the 
open ports, and the fleecy white sulphurous clouds lolled on the 
river's bosom until the gentle morning air carried them slowly 
away southward. 

Soon the sun, rising higher in the heavens, shone brilliantly 
down on the line of ships. They formed a pretty sight as they lay 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 755 

at anchor one below the other, their clean, bright metal reflecting 
the warmth of the sun. Heading the line was the Despatch. At 
her foretop fluttered the ensign of Admiral Jouett. In close order 
following were the Powhatan, Omaha, Swatara, Alliance and the 
revenue cutter U S. Grant. At the stern of each vessel floated a 
little steam launch for the use of the officers. At ten o'clock the 
excursion boats began to arrive. The Plymouth Rock brought 
down 350 passengers from Peekskill ; the C. A. Pean a like number 
from Yonkers ; the Alpine 250 from the same village, and the 
i^leasant Valley and Fort Lee each landed 300 excursionists 
trom the lower end of the city. The same boats made many trips 
each way, and every time the throng in the Park was swelled by 
heir living cargoes. 

Meanwhile on the shore, men, women and boys were rushing 
about in the endeavor to secure a point of vantage from which to 
view the burial pageant. Early in the morning Foreman McCann 
and Chief Engineer Kellogg had gangs of men on the ground to 
put the finishing touches on the work of the past week. The 
graders were busy levelling off the driveways leading to and from 
the tomb; the masons were trimming the stone pavement and 
making a temporary board platform before the tomb, and a large 
force of laborers set green slates of turf around the sides and rear 
of the vault, making the sloping, gravelly hill a place of freshness 
and beauty. All the roads about the place were rolled and sprinkled 
until they looked cool and smooth. A fresh coat of gilding was 
put on the finial cross at the apex of the roof and on the iron name, 

Grant," which stretches across the inner grated door. The inside 
of the tomb was next carefully swept with brooms, and before the 
news of the coming procession reached Claremont Bluff everything 
was in readiness. 

With the opening of the day the crowds began to make their ap- 
pearance, and while the work around the tomb was in progress the 
multitude was augmented by new arrivals until the patience of the 
police was taxed in their efforts to control it. A cordon of police 
officers stretched completely around the burial mound in the centre 
of the Park. There were 500 city policemen, under Inspector 
Dilks, and 150 park policemen, commanded by Captain Beatty. 
No one was allowed to pass the line without the proper credentials. 
Without the line of officers the crowd pressed and surged. The 
;tands erected for their accommodation rapidly filled up, at an ad- 
mission of one dollar, until there was room for no more. A tempo- 
rary floor, upon which were placed seats to accommodate over four 
hundred of the mourners who rode in carriages in the procession, 
was laid in front of the tomb, distant about fifty feet. Between these 
seats and the tomb, and to the left of its entrance, the cedar outer 



7^6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

casket, to contain the coffin, was resting on two standards. It was 
at once the centre of an interested group of officers and civihans, 
eager to examine its beautiful workmanship. 

When the sun stole in through the barred gates of the City Hall 
in the morning it flashed upon the burnished silver mountings of , 
the casket, and was reflected from the steel helmets of a guard from ' 
the Seventy-first regiment. It paled the electric lights, which soon' 
went out. With it came a cool breeze that fluttered the sombre 
drapery hanging from the arches overhead, and rustled the leaves 
and the flowers that formed the background to the casket. 

At one o'clock the double file of people had been stopped in the 
march past the bier, the iron gates were closed, the last look at the 
dead was taken, and the coffin lid shut out forever from the world's 
view the face of General Grant. 

Impressive in the dignity of its simplicity, historic in its character 
and meaning was the scene. The eyes of the nation were centred 
upon that black draped vestibule, between whose massive pillars 
the country's hero slept his long sleep. The hour was fast ap- 
proaching when he should be borne out through those iron portals 
and carried through a dense lane of his mourning fellow-citizens to 
his resting-place by the river's side. At the head of the casket 
stood a man, one of whose sleeves dangled empty at his side. The 
arm had been left behind on some battle-field. Medals of bronze 
decorated his breast. His gaze was fixed upon the casket. Other 
men in dark blue, who also carried medals, stood about in regular 
order like statues. Hardly a movement they made, and not a word 
broke the tomb-like stillness of the place. Flanking these, with 
military erectness, were men in gayer uniforms, who carried swords 
at their sides and wore upon their heads white helmets tipped with 
steel. At a greater distance policemen guarded every approach. 
Little change was there in the scene at any time. 

As the hours wore on martial sounds came floating in through 
the barred gatrS and martial sights began to appear upon the broad 
plaza in front of the City Hall, upon which the silent watchers now 
and then looked out. The hosts were gathering at the various 
points to which they had been assigned. Strains of solemn music, 
to which the tramp of marching feet kept time, came from Broad- 
way. Now and then a post of Grand Army men filed past, with 
colors draped and drooping and muffled drums. At intervals the 
sound of a far away discharge of artillery broke upon the ear, and 
mingling with all was the mournful tolling of the bell in St. Paul's 
Church tower. Fitting sounds were these. They seemed to voice 
a nation's sorrow, and were but the echo of other similar sounds 
that were going up from all parts of the land. 

Now there was the measured tramp of feet upon the plaza, which 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 757 

ceases at the sharp word of command. Then the butts of a hun- 
dred muskets came to the pavement with one sound. The regulars 
had arrived — a company of the Fifth artillery and one of the 
Twelfth infantry — and taken up position facing the entrance to the 
hall. They compose the guard of honor. About the same time 
thirteen soldierly men marched up the steps in double file, and, 
dividing ranks, took up position on either side of the casket. This 
was the immediate body-guard from U. S. Grant Post, No. 327, 
men who took up their honored task on the summit of Mt. 
McGregor, who accompanied the body to Albany and who would 
not leave their charge until it had been laid in the tomb. Their 
comrades, who had been on duty since five o'clock, quietly withdrew, 
and after this momentary interruption the solemn hush once more 
fell upon the scene. It was nine o'clock, and in half an hour the 
start was made. Just preceding this there was a gathering of men 
in civilian's dress upon the City Hall steps. Quietly they arranged 
themselves in a group, facing the park, a baton waved and a soft 
strain of music was wafted in to the watchers. Then there was the 
low, gradually swelling sound of a hundred voices chanting a part- 
ing dirge. The Liederkranz was paying a last tribute. 

Although at this time there was nothing to see but the front of 
the City Hall, everybody seemed to realize the solemnity of the 
occasion. Conversation was hushed, the crowd was almost mo- 
tionless, and the silence was broken only by the twittering of the 
sparrows and the jingling of the street car bells. The plaza in front 
of the City Hall gates and the grass plots in a semicircle from the 
ends of the building extending as far as the fountain were ke[>t 
cleared of the multitude by an unbroken line of policemen. 

The impressiveness of the scene was deepened as the United 
States Infantry band from the depot at David's Island made the air 
throb with the strains of Sullivan's " Lost Chord." While this was 
being played the Liederkranz singers took their stand upon the 
steps. They sang, when the notes of the band had died away, the 
"Gesang der Geister ijber den Wassern" of Schubert — the song of 
the spirits over the water. The voices sounded clear and sweet in 
the bright morning air, and the walls of the building served to 
reflect the sounds, so that it is probable that nearly all, even of that 
vast assemblage, heard the music. After a short interval they sang 
again — the "Trauerchor der Pilger," the pilgrim's chorus, from 
" Tannhauser." 

CLERGYMEN AND PALL-BEARERS. 

At a quarter to nine o'clock there was a pushing back of the 
crowds at the Park row entrance to the plaza, and a line of open 
carriages drove in. They contained the clergymen, the physicians 
and the pall-bearers. In the first carriage rode the Rev. Dr. New- 



758 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

man and Bishop Harris, representatives of the Methodist Church. 
The second carriage contained Bishop Potter, representing the 
Episcopalian communion, and the Rev. Dr. Field, the Presbyterian. 
The Rev. Dr. Chambers, of the Dutch Reformed Church, and Dr. 
West, of the Congregational, were in the third carriage. The fourth 
carriage attracted general attention. The Rev. Dr. Collyer, repre- 
senting the Unitarian Church, was seen sitting there alone, while 
by its side and on foot walked the representative of the Jewish 
faith, which forbids its adherents to ride on their Sabbath. Father 
McGlynn, the Catholic clergyman, was in the next carriage, and by 
his side sat the Rev. Dr. Bridgman, the Baptist. The physicians — 
Drs. Douglas, Shrady, Sands and Elliott — were together in one 
coach. 

Then came the pall-bearers. General Sherman, in cocked hat 
and gold lace, rode beside General Johnston, the Southern leader, 
in plain civilian's clothes. In the next carriage General Sheridan, 
also in uniform, talked with General Buckner, his old time adver- 
sary. George W. Childs and Anthony J. Drexel were in the 
succeeding coach, and Admirals Porter and Worden in the one 
following. Oliver Hoyt and George Jones and General Logan and 
Mr. Boutwell were in the last two carriages. 

The carriages formed in two lines on the western half of the 
plaza and waited. Presently a wagon containing the flight of black 
covered steps used in mounting to the funeral car drove in, and 
then, at twenty-five minutes to ten, a way was opened at Park 
Row, and the nodding black plumes of the car were seen approach- 
ing. Twenty-four black horses, with black trappings and each led 
by a colored groom, moved slowly and impressively across the 
plaza and stopped with the catafalque directly in front of the en- 
trance to the City Hall. The guard of honor marched across to 
the steps and formed in double lines facing each other and extend- 
ing from the pillars of the vestibule down to the plaza and to the 
side of the funeral car. The artillery was on the west side and 
the infantry on the east. While the steps were being placed in 
position at the funeral car the clergymen, the physicians and pall- 
bearers left their carriages and entered the City Hall. Instinctively 
every head in the vast concourse was uncovered and everybody 
waited in perfect silence. 

The hour had arrived. There was no bustle or confusion. The 
face of Dr. Newman appeared in the gateway. He announced that 
the clergy and the pall-bearers were in readiness. They were 
grouped just outside the gates, sashes of white caught up with 
black running from their shoulders to their waists. Senior Vice 
Commander John H. Johnson, of Grant Post, G. A. R., quietly 
gave the word to his twelve men. They took hold of the silver 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 



759 



handles of the casket and raised it from its resting-place. Care- 
fully they lowered it, and were ready for the transfer to the waiting 
funeral car. The little procession was arranged as follows, with 
the pall-bearers and clergy in advance and Commander Johnson 
heading his men : 

Left of the Casket, Right of the Casket 

Comrade Corwin. Comrade Tebbitts. 

Comrade Howatt. Comrade McKellar. 

Comrade McDonald. Comrade McKelvey. 

Comrade Squires. Comrade Brodie. 

Comrade Knight. Comrade Collins. 

Comrade Guillam. Comrade Barker. 
Comrades Downing and Ormsby, of Wheeler Post. 

Representatives of the Loyal Legion of Hono-r-, comprising General John 
J. Milman, General C. A. Carlton, Paymaster 'George D. Bartno, Lieutenant- 
Colonel Floyd Clarkson, Lieutenant-Colonel A. M. Clark and Captain E 
Blunt. 

While the band of the regulars played a funeral march the pro- 
cession slowly moved down the steps. The hats of the great 
throng that lined the edge of the p^rk were simultaneously re- 
moved, and two photographers caught; the historic picture. Up the 
steps that led to the funeral car the Grand Army men moved with 
their burden. They deposited it upon its resting-place. The whole 
scene had occupied but five minutes. 

The pall-bearers and the clergy and physicians walked back to 
their carriages, re-entered them, were driven slowly out into Broad- 
way and halted. The army guard of honor, headed by the band, 
marched slowly around the funeral car to the end of the plaza, at 
carry arms, and stopped at Broadway. The Twelfth Infantry com- 
pany was in the van, immediately behind the pall-bearers' carriages 
and the artillery battery followed. Then the members of Grant 
Post, who had been waiting on Broadway, entered the plaza and 
formed twelve files front immediately before the car. Some of 
the veterans bore small wreaths of evergreens in their hands. On 
either side of the funeral car stood the thirteen members of the 
Grant Post who had constituted the last guard at the City Hall. 
Directly behind the car walked the ten members of the Wheeler 
Grand Army Post who had attended the body from Mt. Mc- 
Gregor. Six veteran officers of the Loyal Legion stood shoulder 
to shoulder behind the car. Mayor Grace and the members of 
the Board of Aldermen in their carriages then fell into line. 

There was a brief pause after this little procession had formed, 
and then the David's Lsland Band played the first notes of Bee- 
thoven's '' Marche Funebre." The army guard of honor moved 
as one man, with arms reversed and solemn tread; the sable 



760 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

plumes on the car nodded, and so the body of the dead General 
started upon its last march. 

The crowd waited with uncovered heads and in solemn silence 
until the car had turned into Broadway, and then, with a decorum 
remarkable, considering the vast numbers, moved in a body out of 
the park into the street, and so on past the City Hall to Chambers 
Street. 

All night long workmen had been preparing with saw and 
hammer for the march up Broadway. Hundreds of stands were 
hastily erected in all sorts of places. One, probably, with the 
permission of somebody in authority, had been erected on Pearl 
Street just off Broadway. It was so large that it filled the street 
from curb to curb, thus preventing the passage of teams. A board 
stuck in a barrel of sand bore this notice, " Street closed." Tem- 
porary balconies had been built over a store at Canal Street and 
Broadway. In front of the ruins of Harrigan & Hart's Theatre 
Comique speculators had erected a stand one hundred feet in 
length. The windows of many of the great warehouses along 
Broadway had been cleared of goods and the empty spaces filled 
in with chairs. At the hour set for the start of the procession the 
sidewalks were densely packed with people who had been flocking 
to the scene almost from dawn. On every side there was a sea of 
faces. Wherever the eye was turned it was met by thousands of 
other eyes. 

The Grand Army organizations were deployed in line on the 
west side of Broadway from Duane Street up. On the east side, 
extending nearly as far as the Fifth Avenue Hotel, had been 
formed the various regiments of the National Guards of New York 
and other States, and all the armed military organizations compris- 
ing the military escort. It was a suggestive contrast. On one side 
of the way were the grizzled veterans of the great rebellion who 
had fought under Grant, and on the other the young and spruce 
looking members of the militia regiments. Here and there in the 
ranks of the old soldiers was to be seen a tattered battle flag, tell- 
ing in silent eloquence its story of heroism. It was only a ragged 
bit of silk, but was as striking in its contrast to the bright new 
banners of the young guardsmen opposite as the plain and often 
shabby clothing of the veterans was to the showy uniforms of the 
youngsters. 

THE LAST SALUTE. 

At a given signal the militia organizations had fallen into line 
ahead of the hearse, in compliance with the forms of a military 
funeral, which require that all armed soldiery shall precede the 
body. When the funeral car reached Chambers Street, therefore, 
the military organizations simply wheeled into the procession in 



BORNE Tp HIS REST. 76 1 

the van. But all along the street for blocks and blocks could be 
seen the Grand Army posts still waiting, for to them had been 
justly awarded the honor of joining in the cortege immediately 
behind the body as mourners. 

There was a delay at Duane Street, and the funeral car and its 
immediate escort stopped to permit the militia to get into line 
ahead. The procession soon started forward, however, and then an 
impressive sight was witnessed. The Grand Army posts, for 
blocks and blocks, as the car moved on, saluted the dead, each 
veteran standing, with his Grand Army medal covered with crape 
and with a mourning.knot upon the left arm, and raised his soft 
black hat from his head with the risfht hand, then brina-ine it to the 
left breast with the crown outward, and holding it there until the 
remains had passed. Then, as the guard of honor marched past, 
the Grand Army men wheeled into the line, marching not as sepa- 
rate posts, but consolidated into battalions and brigades. 

And so the procession, swelling by the hundreds at every block, 
moved on up Broadway. 

It would be too much to say that the hundred thousand people 
who massed themselves in and about Madison Square, packing the 
streets solidly, overflowing every window, obeying the slightest 
hint of the humblest policeman, footsore with long and weary wait- 
ing, had the faintest idea that the programme of the day would be 
executed to the letter, but when, at a few moments after ten, word 
was passed alpng the line that the column had turned from Four- 
teenth Street into Fifth Avenue it was as though an electric shock 
had been given to every person in the crowd. The scene was a 
picture. The fagade of the Fifth Avenue Hotel, becomingly draped 
in heavy mourning, seemed alive with spectators. Every window 
on the Broadway side had its quota, its full complement of occu- 
pants, while on the roof men and women stood like bees in a hive. 

Far up the line of march could be seen the floating plumes, the 
burnished weapons, the showy uniforms and the impatient steeds 
of the military waiting their turn to fall into line. Immediately in 
front, barring egress through Twenty-third Street, stood the Twen- 
ty-second as motionless as machinery at rest. Back of them stood 
a line of policemen, and back of them the multitude. A shrill 
blast from a bugle told the story of the commander's coming. 
Preceded by a well-kept line of mounted police came the army and 
the navy. Hancock on a magnificent horse looked every inch a 
soldier, followed at a respectful distance by his gorgeous and glit- 
tering staff. Nothing save respect to the memory of the dead — 
nothing but that subtle intuition which taught every heart m that 
crowd the delicacies of the occasion, restrained the multitude from 
an outburst of spontaneous recognition of the gallant bearing and 



762 LIFE OF ULYSSJES S. GRANT. 

noble presence of this superb cortege. Opera-glasses were brought 
into requisition by ladies in all the windows, and Hancock and his 
aides faced a battery more numerous in its charges than any he 
ever saw on the field of battle. To say that the regular troops 
marched well would be but a simple statement of fact, and to say 
that every eye in all that interested multitude rested with regard and 
admiration upon the soldiers and the sailors in that part of the 
division would be to tell the simple truth. 

General Shaler had reason to be entirely satisfied with his com- 
mand. The Fn'st and Second brigades fell into line, according to 
the official programme, with full ranks propejrly equipped and with 
a port and dignity of carriage that secured the admiration their 
appearance challenged. Immediately opposite to the main entrance 
to the Fifth Avenue Hotel, in the centre of the street, lay a small 
piece of paper, at which every line deployed from left to right, 
moving from the Broadway path into the Fifth Avenue thorough- 
fare. The movement was one calculated to test the military know- 
ledge and expertness of the men, and it was interesting and curious 
to note the comm.ents of the people in the crowd. When a com- 
pany made a clean cut deploy there was a subdued but perceptible 
recognition, as when they made a ragged and unprofessional deploy 
there was a subdued but perceptible hum of dissatisfaction. 

Between ten o'clock and one, at which time the President and 
the other dignitaries, whose headquarters were in the Fifth Avenue, 
joined the procession, the hotel was a centre of curiosity to a large 
crowd of people unable to get nearer Broadway than the Twenty- 
third Street entrance, where stood several open carriages for the 
President and his friends and two or three hundred other carriages 
for other people and their friends. The President looked remark- 
ably well, pulled his hat well down over his forehead and wore a 
dark suit of broadcloth, the coat buttoned high in the breast. He 
held quite a levee, talking very earnestly and pleasantly with Secre- 
tary Bayard, who looks pale and wan. 

Vice-President Hendricks held a little levee by himself, wearing 
most of the time his hat, apparently in the best of health and the 
best of spirits. Ex-President Hayes, with much thoughtful con- 
sideration, passed most of the time with the ladies of the bereaved 
family, with whom he is on the best of terms, and who appear to 
look to him to a certain extent for counseling aid and comfort. 
The most dignified, certainly the most graciously easy of the dis- 
tinguished party in the hotel, was ex-President Arthur, who was 
cordially greeted by everybody and most respectfully treated wher- 
ever he moved. 

The troops continued their onward march, each regiment pre- 
ceded by a full band, the music of the occasion being, by the way, 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 763 

one of its most significant features. Probably out of deference to 
the fact that the family were stopping in the Fifth Avenue Hotel 
every band without exception during the entire day struck up at 
Twenty-first Street, and continued in full tide of successful opera- 
tion along Broadway to the deploy line, and thence up Fifth Ave- 
nue as far as Thirtieth Street, and some still farther. This fact, 
added to the advantageous point for observation afforded by the 
open square and the large spaces referred to above, made the scene 
from this point particularly picturesque and noteworthy. Far in 
advance of each brigade rode its commander, followed at the proper 
distance by his staff. Then came the colonel of each particular 
regiment, followed by his staff, and then the music. It was noticed 
with particular pleasure that the officers were almost without excep- 
tion admirably mounted. 

One of the most interesting features was the appearance of the 
Old Guard, which wore the old time bear-skin cap, the old style 
white coat and the old style blue trousers. They were preceded by 
a superb band playing " Nearer my God to Thee." After the band 
followed the veteran George Washmgton McLean, walking like a 
chief mourner, far in advance of his handsome command. It was hard 
for the people to restrain themselves at that point. They wanted to 
applaud and to recognize the soldierly bearing of the gallant men 
who followed the gallant Major in his gallant tread. The oldest 
military organization in the country is the Governor's Foot Guard, 
of Hartford, Conn., which presented a unique and odd but interest- 
ing appearance as the men came along in their old style uniform, 
preceded by a particularly good band. The colored guards, it is 
pleasant to record, looked well, marched well and deserved well of 
their fellow-citizens. 

Very great interest was excited by the appearance of the South- 
ern troops — more especially the Gate City Guard of Atlanta, the 
Virginia State Troop and the Union Veteran Corps from the District 
of Columbia. 

The New Jersey National Guard made a fine appearance. They 
turned out in great numbers, and added their full quota to the in- 
terest of the occasion and their full share to the magnificent 
music of the day. 

Pennsylvania's quota soon came, and the gallant boys of the 
First Regiment, in their new blouses and white pantaloons, stepped 
forward, platoon after platoon, with the regularity of clockwork. 
At the head rode Colonel Theodore L. Wiedersheim and his staff 
Lieutenant-Colonel Gilpin and Major Bowman rode on either flank. 
J. Houston Merrill acted as special aid, and Lieutenant C. F. Ken- 
sil took the place of Adjutant Groff Quartermaster Roberts, 
Paymaster Taber, Surgeon O'Neill and Assistant Surgeons Muhlen- 



764 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

berg and Smith were also present, as well as Sergeant-Major 
J. G. Post, Quartermaster-Sergeant T. H. Gallagher, Thomas A. 
Sergeant, G. L. Walker and Hospital-Steward Charles Ouram, 
who were present as the non-commissioned staff. 

When the parade was over it was conceded that no body of 
militia had made anything near approaching the display of disci- 
pline and training shown by the First Regiment of Philadelphia. 
Colonel Wiedersheim, by his skillful handling of the men, showed 
his tact and ability as a commander during the day, and it was 
frequently commented upon by older heads acquainted with the 
management of veteran and volunteer troops. All along the line, 
as in Washington, the white pants and marching order knapsacks 
attracted marked attention, and the men would have received 
hearty applause had such an evidence of approval not been 
regarded as out of place on such an occasion. It was the only 
regiment in the line in heavy marching order, and it is, of course, 
understood that the smoothness of their movements was conse- 
quently so much the more creditable as compared with the 
marching of the men who carried nothing but their guns and ac- 
coutrements. 

Many of these people, this vast crowd, this enormous aggrega- 
tion, thousands and tens of thousands of them, had been there 
since very early in the morning, and some all night. Wearied and 
tired, impatient, they stood and waited and wondered and waited 
until the procession came, and then, as though aflame with inter- 
est and curiosity and with respectful determination and desire to 
know all about the tribute to the man they honored, they became 
creatures of impulse in act and look and gesture, so that from ten 
o'clock until one, a space of three hours, during which, with two 
exceptions, perhaps of five minutes each, when the troops were 
resting, they had been interested and satisfied. 

Then came the sensation of the day. 

Far down the line started that subtle something which told this 
great mass on Fifth Avenue, Broadway and Twenty-third Street 
that that for which all eyes were waiting was almost before them. 

The catafalque was coming. 

Grant's body would soon be with them. 

Through all this crowd there ran a stir. People already packed 
to the verge of suffocation packed closer. The long quadruple 
line of carriages which stretched from Fifth Avenue through West 
Twenty-third Street beyond Seventh Avenue, moved restlessly. 

Drivers got themselves into positions and distinguished guests 
took seats. Escorted by Marshal McMichael, the President, un- 
gloved, entered his carriage, and by his side sat Secretary Bayard, 
also without gloves. The crowd pressed close, the footman took 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 765 

his seat by the side of the coachman and the six horses pranced 
and danced as though impatient for their opportunity to participate 
in the procession. Vice-President Hendricks, with his hat pulled 
down over his right eye, with a glove on his left hand, took a seat 
in the next carriage. The^n came ex-President Hayes and ex- 
President Arthur, and following them the long list of dignitaries, 
as given, all took seats and waited, while with solemn step, keep- 
ing time to the measured music of a glorious band, came the chief 
feature of the procession. Bareheaded, young Mr. Merritt walked 
perhaps fifteen feet in advance of the leaders. There were twenty- 
four horses, covered with black netting, draped in mourning and 
led by colored grooms, to draw the enormous vehicle with its 
sacred burden. When the casket, covered with black, exposing its 
long silver handles only, came in full view, without a word, hint, 
sign or suggestion from any mortal hand, every person instantly 
removed his hat. 

There was no flag about the coffin, no national insignia of any 
sort about the catafalque, no flowers, nothing whatever to detract 
from the simple grandeur of that solitary casket, raised high in air 
above the heads of all who saw it, containing all that remains of 
the man who in his time commanded ten times more armed men 
than followed him to his grave. 

The long line of carriages instantly fell into place, and then 
there was a rush to see the family and relatives of General Grant, 
the old members of his- staff, the ex-Cabinet officers, the clergy 
and physicians. A halt was called in the line of carriages going 
up Broadway, and from one of them stepped Mayor Grace, at- 
tended by Alderman Sanger and Comptroller Loew, who, escorted 
by Captain Williams, made hurried way to the Twenty-third Street 
entrance of the hotel, and gave official greeting to the President 
and the other distinguished guests. Resuming their seats in their 
carriages, a signal was given and the procession moved on. Dr. 
Newman and Bishop Morris sat together in the foremost carriage. 
Dr. Newman sits high, and his countenance wore not unnaturally 
a calmly satisfied expression as he moved along, part and parcel 
of this deliberate testimonial in honor of his friend and parishioner. 
Bishop Potter was recognized by many, and pleasantly returned 
their salutations. Dr. Collyer, being tired of riding, walked in the 
centre of the street, accompanied by the representative of the He- 
brew faith, his huge form towering above his surrounding com- 
rades. Curiosity was manifested in all the crowds to see Drs. 
Douglas and Shrady, and many manifestations of sympathy and 
respect were extended to them, more especially to Dr. Douglas, who 
is not in robust health. The face of Rear Admiral Worden isn't 
as well known as his services are, but he attracted much attention, 



7 66 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

as naturally did General Sherman, who never looked more rugged, 
never more interested, never more soldierly than on this occasion. 
Phil. Sheridan, too, is much less known than is the record of his 
deeds, but he was recognized by many and talked of by all. 

The appearance of General Johnston and General Buckner was 
almost a signal for an outburst of applause, and it would have taken 
but little to draw from the vast host. of interested and gratified spec- 
tators a tumultuous indication of their pleasure at seeing them as 
pall-bearers at the funeral of the Federal commander. Speaker 
Carlisle and ex-Speaker Randall are very well known in New York, 
more especially the gentleman from Pennsylvania, and when they 
came along, followed by Governor Long, of Massachusetts, and 
Randolph Tucker, of Virginia, and Wade Hampton, of South 
Carolina, and William M. Evarts, of New York, with Archy Bliss, 
of Brooklyn, and General Bingham, of Pennsylvania, and Horace 
Porter, with Rufus Ingalls and Comstock and Smith, of Grant's 
staff, followed by the copper-colored General Parker, who, as Grant's 
military secretary, was present at the meeting between Grant and 
Lee at Appomattox, the stir in the crowd became a push, and it 
was with difficulty that Captain Williams' men secured that perfect 
quiet which down to that moment had characterized the conduct of 
the crowd. The dashing staff of General Sheridan, followed by 
General Schofield and his staff, made a profound impression upon 
the popular mind, which lasted long enough to enable them to 
endure with some degree of patience the long, long line of carriages 
containing committees and governors and heads of bureaus and 
politicians and distinguished merchants and all that sort of men 
who then appeared. 

The veteran division was under command of Major-General 
Sickles, who drove at the head of the line in a handsome victoria 
drawn by two spanking horses. He and his companion, in the full 
regimentals of their position, were picturesque, dashing and inter- 
esting to a degree. Then came the veterans, the retired officers 
and the societies of the several armies, each and all suggestive of 
fighting days and troublous times long since past, leading up to the 
coming of the Grand Army of the Republic, commanded by Gen- 
eral Burdette. Every one of these posts had a band. Sometimes 
the band was a full military band, at others it was a simple drum 
and fife, at others a drum and fife corps, but every one according to 
its means had done what it could to honor the day and make mem- 
orable the funeral of the man who led them on to battle and to 
glory. As the Grant Post passed the Fifth Avenue Hotel every 
man lifted his hat in recognition of the mourners, and as they 
pushed along, marching like men accustomed to march, holding 
themselves erect, yet without strain, bearing themselves with a 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 767 

swinging dignity characteristic of the soldiers of the RepubHc,. 
every eye in all that multitude fastened upon them ; and universal 
compliment was paid the organizations which came from Maine, 
from the Potomac, from Texas, from Iowa, from Connecticut and 
Maryland, from Illinois and Virginia and Indiana, from New Jersey, 
New Hampshire and Colorado, from Wisconsin, Missouri and Kan- 
sas, from the Old Bay State and the Empire State as well, thousands 
of them coming at great expense in the aggregate, that they might 
swell this enormous outpouring, this overwhelming demonstration 
in honor of the man whom they saw fit to honor most. It was a 
touching tribute, a beautiful sight — something long, long to be re- 
membered. Then came General O'Beirne and staff, chief of the 
First Brigade of veteran organizations, first of which was the Sev- 
enty-ninth Regiment of Highlanders in their typical costume, fol- 
lowed by the old-time Fire Zouaves and the Duryea Zouaves, Gari- 
baldi Guards and others, all with bands, all with banners, all with 
evident interest and sympathy for the occasion, leading up to the 
Second Brigade of Colonel Rafferty, in which were the famous Haw- 
kins Zouaves and the volunteers, the veterans who ran out from this 
city quick to meet the foe in the troubled days of 1861 and on, and 
the Tammany Regiment, the old Forty-second of New York, with the 
Mexican War veterans, and they in turn followed by General Frank 
Spinola and staff at the head of the Third Brigade of veterans, re- 
calling to the minds of many the day when the same General, at 
the head of some of the same troops, marched on to a ferry-boat 
leading from Brooklyn to New York and went away to the front, 
leaving politics and local issues behind. 

General McMahon was an imposing figure on horseback, and as he 
rode along, followed by his staff, at the head of the civic division, 
his martial bearing and well-equipped appearance attracted com- 
ment on every side. His division rode in carriages and closed the 
procession, which moved along past |he Worth Monument at three 
o'clock, followed by a vast concourse of interested people, whose 
companions and comrades sought quickly the elevated road on 
either side, hurrying homeward to the train or up town that they 
might catch a second look and participate in the final ceremonies 
of the Riverside interment. 

A large force of mounted policemen had gone a few minutes before 
to clear the way, and the street was unobstructed from curb to curb 
as General Hancock rode forward in advance of his brilliantly- 
uniformed staff Every eye was turned upon the commanding 
general who, besides his fame as a soldier, is notable as one of the 
handsomest officers in the service. His stalwart form and splendid 
carriage fully justified the encomiums that have been given to his 
appearance at the head of his troops. His aides were as follows : 



7 58 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Major-General J. G. Farnsworth, Rear-Admiral C. R. P. Rodgers, 
Brevet Major-Generals Rufus Ingalls, James B. Fry, Edward Fer- 
rero, Henry A. Barn urn ; Brigadier-Generals Egbert L. Viele, Lloyd 
Aspinwall, Horatio C. King, Fitzhugh Lee, N. Gano Dunn ; Brevet 
Brigadier- Generals John C. Tidball, C. B. Comstock, Theodore F. 
Rodenbough, Horace Porter, H. A. Bingham, Joseph S. Fullerton, 
Francis A. Walker, C. A. Carlton, Edward W. Serrell, W. G. Mauk, 
H. C. Barney, W. H. Penrose ; General Lopez de Querralta and John 
B.' Gordon, and Colonels John Hamilton, John P. Nicholson, 
Schuyler Crosby, Patrick M. Haverty, George W. Cooney, William 
E Van Wyck, James M. Varnum, P. Lacy Goddard, Lewis W. 
Read, Thomas L. Watson, C. M. Schieffelin, J. B. Phillips, Robert 
Lenox Belknap, E. M. L. Ehlers, J. F. Tobias, B. Penn Smith, 
Brevet Colonel A. P. Green, Lieutenant-Colonel H. C. Hodges, 
Brevet Lieutenant-Colonels W. H. Harris, G. L. Gillespie, William 
Ludlow, James Farney, Frederick A. Sawyer, Finley Anderson and 
Edward Haight; Majors Jacob Hess, W. L. Skidmore, J. C Paine, 
William H. Corsa, R. Livingstone Luckey, W. R. Mattlson, 
Augustus S. Nicholson and Ivan Tailoff; Ensign Aaron Vanderbilt; 
Captains John H. Weeks, James H. Merryman, James W. Brinck, 
R. H. McLean, DeWitt Ward and T. J.Spencer; Lieutenants H. 
R. Lemly, A. M. Parker, John Schuyler, Jared L. Rathbone, R. H. 
Patterson and Charles G. Treat. 

Following the staff came Battery F, of the Fifth Artillery, with 
^our field pieces and caissons, under the command of Major Wallace 
F. Randolph. Nearly three hundred regulars from the Engineers' 
Corps at Willett's Point, under command of Brevet Major-General 
Henry L. Abbott, were next in line, and the army detail was com- 
pleted by Batteries I, L, M, and H, of the Fifth Artillery, marching 
as infantry and commanded by Colonel Abram C. Wildrich. The 
regulars presented a fine appearance and marched well. Each 
command was accompanied by^mbulances. But the '"' blue jackets," 
or sailors and the marines, presented a much more picturesque 
appearance. The sailors were dressed in blue trousers, with white 
leggings, white sailor shirts and white rimless round hats. The 
marines were in blue, with white helmets. The Navy contingent 
was in command of Commander Henry B. Robeson, and Lieu- 
tenant McLean, Passed Assistant Surgeons D. N. Bentollette and 
Howard E. Ames, and Ensign B. C. Dent as aides. Following the 
staff came twenty blue jacket sappers and miners from the steamer 
Omaha, under command of Ensign Guy W. Brown. Next came 
the Marine Band from Washington, preceding a battalion of about 
300 marines, in seven companies, under command of Captain Ed- 
ward P. Meeker and Frederick H. Corrie. A battalion of blue- 
jackets, of ten companies, sixteen files front, came next preceded 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 75 

by the band from the flap-shin Tennp^^^;^^ Tu 

of Lieutenant VV.llian, H. Zory"t^J^cLZ"/f "" ?T """"^ 

diSeY-altili::-?, Sn^a^Sr ^ '96 .'"e-jackets. 
were in command of Lieu tena ts Wil lifm VV r^ K 1,'^ gun. They 
Mertz, and Naval Cadet Arthur H.^uZ ''" '"' ^"^"-^ 

follotd ?he°:iy"a"d ,3"'f'h°" °' '''"^ ^°^'^ '^"^ °"-'- States 
the first dtviS^s emlkahl '^r?'''''"''^- ^^is section of 
skill of the severa command ^,r','" "' ^°'°'' '=«"'^^'=' ^^^ the 
won on any ole occa" on H, f '"''"^■•y^vo'utions would have 
As it was tL nec^^ircou d 1, H, k"'^ ^^^^''"'^ °^ ^" spectators, 
such re,n.ents'^aT£S„;r;%t^---- ^^^^^ 

^^u ed° r^°d "^?he"fir:t ^div!'^" 1 ff^^^^^l^ 
Vork was n. comnSd ^'^^-^^^^iS^-^^^lS- 

Co2:r BeSan^n ^'ciS' r^'^^' ''';^ Z"^'^^"' Lieutenant- 

Lieutenant-C^olond Ed^^^^'kSf^lt'^eS c) "' f ^r'"'''' 
Edson, Lieutenant-Colonel W p^"^"' ^'^ff "'^it-Colonel Cyrus 
nel Edward T Wood f;,,/' f r- ', ^""S'^ton, L,eutenant-Colo- 
Lawson B. Bdl.'Salo; F s'coinn?°'°'"' ''^ ^^ ''^''^''-"-■^' ^'^'^J-' 

?hr'ifoS'<^u2dT';r^f:;n; diS''thS'd 

followed the regulars. The .eJlirtni'^hJ^S^Di^on';-::^ 

/vv'j/ Brigade. 

First Battery, Captain Louis Wendel 
Brjgad.er General William G. Ward and staff. 
Nin r p'"'!"-'^ Regiment, Colonel Joshua Porter. 
Nmth Re-m.cnt, Colonel William Seward Jr 

Eleventh Reo-iment. Colonel Stewart. ' 
Twelfth Regiment, Colonel James H. Jones. 

Second Bj^igade. 
^ Second Battery. Captain F. P. Earle. 
Brigadier General Louis Fitzgerald and Staff. 
Seventh Regmient. Colonel Emmons Clark 

"f^Xn P -^^"'^"VS^^""^^ i^"^es Cavanagh. 
Eighth Regiment, Colonel George D. Scott 
Seventy-first Regiment, Colonel E. A. McAlpin. 



770 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

DIVISION OF VETERANS. 

Colonel David E. Austen, commanding. 

Old Guard, Major George W. McLean. 

Governor's Foot Guard, of Hartford, Connecticut, Major J. C. Kinney. 

Association of 165th New York Volunteers, Colonel Harmon D. Hull. 

Veteran Zouave Association, Captain T. F. Sheenan, 

Tenth Regiment New York Volunteer Veterans, Captain A. Chamberlin. 

Fifth Regiment New York Volunteer Zouaves, Captain B. F. Finley. 

Second Company of Washington Continental Guards, Captain J. G. Norman. 

Columbo Guard, Captain J. Cavagnaro. 

Italian Ritie Guard, Captain R. Sonnabello. 

Garibaldi Legion, Captain E. Spazary. 

Columbia Guards, Captain W. F. Kelly. 

Three companies of Veteran Guards (colored), Captain H. R, Williams. 

Many of these organizations derived special interest from their 
associations, and all turned out full ranks in rich uniforms. The 
prevailing color to the spectator was white, but this was relieved by 
brilliant patches of red and blue and gold. Viewed from a height 
the long line of moving color with the glistening weapons was an 
inspiring spectacle of singular beauty. Each regiment was headed 
by a good band of music, and the sense of hearing as well as that 
of sight was delighted by the harmonies that presented themselves 
as each command came within view and hearing distance. The 
Twenty-second and Seventh regiments were the strongest, and both 
presented a fine appearance in their full dress uniforms. Most of 
the other regiments were in the State uniform, but the Sixty-ninth, 
an Irish organization descended from war times, was in full dress, 
carrying the green above the red in the pompons on the helmets. 
Of the veteran organizations the Old Guard braved the hot sun in 
bear-skin hats ; the Governor's Foot Guards, of Hartford, Conn., 
was conspicuous from its uniform, which is like that of the old 
Hessian grenadiers. The Zouaves in their picturesque uniforms 
were n:iturally objects of interest, as were the Italian organizations 
with their strange mixture of Unitt^d States and Italian colors. 

The second division of the National Guard of. New York was 
under the command of Major General Edward L. Molyneux, with 
the following staff: Colonel William J. Denslow, A. A. G. ; Lieu- 
temnt-Colonel Gustave A. Roullier, I. R. P. ; Lieutenant-Colonel 
J. F Cowan, Ord. O. ; Lieutenant-Colonel John Y. Cullyer, Engi- 
neer; Lieutenant-Colonel J. C. Skene, Surgeon ; Judge A.dvocate 
Albert E. Lamb; Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Arthur, Q. M. ; 
Lieutenant-Colonel John Foord, Com. of Sub. ; Major Robert Her- 
bert, A. D. C; Major H. S. Kingsley, A. D. C. ; Captain Howland 
D. Perrine, Signal Officer. 

Fourth Brigade. 

Brigadier-General, William H. Brownell and staff. 

Twenty-third Regiment, Col. R. C. Ward. 



BORNE TO HIS REST. -7 1 

Thirty-second Regiment, Colonel L. Finkelmeir. 
Forty-seventh Regiment, Col. E. F. Gaylor. 

Third Brigade. 

Third Battery, Captain H. S. Rasquin. Colonel James McLeer and staff. 

Thirteenth Regmient, Colonel A. C. Barnes 

Fourteenth Regiment, Lieutenant-Colonel Harry W. Mitchell 

Seventeenth Separate Company, Captain Miller 

tirst Regiment Pennsylvania National Guard, Colonel T. E. Weidersheim 

Gray Invincibles, Captain John F. Kennard. 

Gate City Guards, of Atlanta. Ga., Lieutenant William* M Camp 

Second Regiment Connec icut National Guard, Colonel W. J Leavenworth 

First Regiment Massachusetts Infantry, Colonel A C Wellino-ton 

Battalion of four companies Viiginia State Troops, Lieutenant-ColSnel* M. S 

Spotswood. 
First Company, Union Veterans, Captain H E Urell 
Union Veteran Corps, District of Columbia, Captain S. E. Thomason 
The Capital City Guards, Captain T. S. Kellv 
Company D, First Minnesota Guard, Captain Bean 
The Veteran Zouaves (Independent), Brigadier-General Drake. 
The First Regiment, of Philadelphia, appeared to great advan- 
tage, although in fatigue caps and coats and white trousers They 
carried knapsacks, with rolled-up blankets, and looked like veteran 
soldiers beside their gaily dressed associates. The Gray Invincibles 
in State uniform, with fatigue caps, also looked and marched well' 
The Second Regiment, of Connecticut, and the First, of Massachusetts 
were particularly fine organizations, and turned out with full ranks' 
Virginia and the District of Columbia sent representative companies^ 
and the Gate City Guards, of Georgia, were also in this division 

New Jersey sent an entire division to take part in the procession 
It was under command of Major General Plume, and was composed 
as follows: 

First Brigade. 

First Regiment. Colonel E. A. Campbell, Newark 

Fourth Regiment, Colonel Samuel D. Dickinson, Jersey City 

Fifth Regiment, Colonel Levi R. B. Bernard, Newark 

Ninth Regiment. Colonel B. Franklin Hart, Hoboken 

First Battalion, Lieutenant-Colonel Joseph W. Congdon, Paterson 

Second Battalion, Lieutenant-Colonel James B. Moore', Leonia. * 

Second Bi-igade. 

Eighth Regiment. 

Third Regiment, Colonel Elihu H. Ropes, Elizabeth 

Sixth Regiment, Colonel William H. Cooper, Camden 

Seventh Regiment, Colonel Robert A. Donnelly, Trenton 

Catling Gun Company B, Captain R. R. Eckendorff, Camden. 

The New Jersey troops presented an excellent appearance and 
turned out about twenty-five hundred men. 

This ended the military part of the display. The catafalque 
with Its guard of honor, the mourning family and friends and the 
distinguished guests were to form the next division, fallino- into 
Ime as the rear of the military passed Twenty-third Street ''Early 



BORNE TO HIS REST. >7'7-> 

in the morning the clergymen, physicians and pall-bearers had 
been taken m carriages from the Fifth Avenue Hotel to the City 
Hall. At nme o'clock the Liederkranz Society, under A-ricol 
Pauer to trombone and horn accompaniment, sang Schubert's 
Geisterchor and Wagner's " Pilgrimchor," from the City Hall 
steps At this moment General Hancock was putting the troops 
in motion, and as the sounds of the music died away. Colonel W 
B. Beck, in command of the escort of regulars, prepared for the 
removal of the casket to tlie catafalque. Battery A of the Fifth 
Artillery, and Company E, of the Twelfth Infantry, formed the 
military guard and were drawn up in two lines to the steps of the 
hall Mayor Grace, attended by President Sanger and Vice-Presi- 
dent Jaehne, of the Board of Aldermen, and William L Turner 
the Mayors secretary, advanced to the foot of the coffin and in a 
few words transferred it from the control of the city to the custody 
of the Government, represented by Colonel Beck. The clergymen 
physicians and pall-bearers having arrived, a short procession was 
formed, and the detail from the Grant Post, of Brookh^n, lifted the 
casket and carried it out to the catafalque in waiting outside This 
was a richly-draped, canopied funeral car, drawn by twenty- four 
black horses, each decorated with black net-work drapery and led 
by a colored groom. Under the canopy and high above the heads 
of the people, the purple velvet casket, with its silver trimmings 
was placed. There was no ornament on the coffin, save the chil- 
dren s wreath of oak leaves, and the only flags displayed were 
lurled and so draped with crape as scarcely to show their colors. 

As the pall-bearers moved from the hall, the David's Island 
Band on the plaza played a dirge, and the guard presented arms 
Ihe catafalque was immediately moved into Broadway, and, when 
the las of the New Jersey troops had been put in motion, followed 
m the line of parade. The formation was as follows • 

Preceding the catafalque was the United States Military Band 
trom David s Island and a delegation from Meade Post, of Phila- 
delphia, appointed to hold Grand Army services over the -rave 

Ihen followed the pall-bearers: General W. T. Sherman U S 
Army, retired; General Joseph E. Johnston, member of Congress 
and ex-commander of Confederate forces; Lieutenant-General P 
H. Sheridan, U. S. Army; General Simon B. Buckner, ex-com- 
mander of Confederate forces; Admiral David D. Porter U S N • 
Vice-Admiral S C. Rowan, U. S N.; Hon. George S.' Boutwell' 
ex-Secretary of the Treasury; General John A. Logan, U. S. Sen^ 
ator; Anthony J. Drexel, Pennsylvania; George W. Childs, Penn- 
sylvania; George Jones, New York; Oliver Hoyt, New York 
^ Ihe physicians, Drs. Douglas, Shrady and Sands, were in car- 
nages, as were the following clergymen: Bishop Harris, Methodist 
Episcopal; Assistant Bishop Henry C. Potter, Protestant Episco^ 



774 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

pal; the Rev. Dr. Chambers, Reformed; the Rev. Dr. Field, Pres- 
byterian; the Rev. Dr. Bridg;man, Baptist; the Rev. Dr. West, 
Congregational; the Rev. Father Deshon, Roman Catholic; the 
Rev. Robert Collyer, Unitarian; Rabbi Browne, Hebrew. 

Here followed the catafalque. The members of the guard of 
honor from the Grant Post, of Brooklyn, marched on either side of 
the hearse, their commander in the rear with two comrades of 
Wheeler Post, of Saratoga. This guard of honor was flanked by 
the two companies of regulars, marching with reversed arms. At 
the rear was a guard of honor from the Loyal Legion. 

Then came a long line of carriages, occupied as follows: In the 
first carriage were Colonel and Mrs. F. D. Grant, his daughter, son 
and Mrs. Sartoris. A wreath of white flowers, in the centre of 
which was the word "Grandpapa," encircled the head of Colonel 
Grant's daughter. Harrison, the colored servant, sat by the driver. 
Next came U- S. Grant, Jr., wife, daughter and Senor Romero. 
Hawkins, the coachman of the White House, sat by the driver of 
this carriage. They were followed by Jesse R. Grant, his wife and 
daughter and W. W. Smith. In the next carriage was ex-Minister 
M. J. Cramer, his wife and daughter, and they were followed by 
ex-Postmaster-Gener::l Creswell and wife and Lockwood Honore, 
of Chicago. Next came Mr. and Mrs. Potter Palmer and Mrs. F. 
T. Dent and daughter. Major Sharpe, General Beale and W. J. 
Arkell were in the next carriage and George P. Johnson, of Cin- 
cinnati, Grant Cramer and Jennie Grant, a niece, came next. They 
were followed by J. W. Drexel and Levi P. Morton in one carriage, 
and H. Honore, V. K. Honore, S. F. Moriarity and Otis Gove in 
another. Then came Mrs. Jennie Holman and Stenographer Daw- 
son. The Aztec Club of officers of the army in Mexico, of which 
General Grant was vice-president when he died, were represented 
by General Z. B. Tower, General C. P. Stone, General Schuyler 
Hamilton and General O. L. Shepherd. 

In the following carriages came General Horace Porter, General 
C. P. Comstock, General Rufus Ingalls and General Sooy, of Gen- 
eral Grant's field staff, and General George H. Sharpe, Colonel Eli 
S. Parker, Colonel O. H. Ross and Colonel A. B. Baxter, also of 
General Grant's staff. The following represented former Cabinets 
of General Grant: Chief Justice Richardson, ex-Secretary of the 
Treasury Benjamin H. Bristow, and James N. Tyner, ex-Postmas- 
ter-General, in one carriage; Columbus Delano, ex-Secretary of the 
Interior, and W. W. Belknap, ex-Secretary of War, in another; 
George M. Robeson, ex-Secretary of the Navy, and Edwards 
Picrrepont, ex- Attorney-General, in a third, and in the fourth cx- 
Postmaster-General Gresham and ex-Secretary Lincoln. 

A considerable delay followed the appearance of the ex- Cabinet 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 775 

officers, but at 10.25 o'clock President Cleveland, accompanied by- 
Secretary Bayard, walked from the hotel and seated himself in a 
carriage drawn by six bay ho'-ses. Immediately behind this carri- 
age was another drawn by four bay horses, in which sat Vice Presi- 
dent Hendricks. He was accompanied by Senator Blair and 
General Hughes East. In the following carriage, all alone, was 
Justice Woods, of the Supreme Court. The Cabinet officers fol- 
lowed in three carriages, as follows: Messrs. Manning and Endicott, 
Messrs. Whitney and Vilas, and Messrs. Lamar and Garland. The 
next carriage contained Colonels Lamont and McMichael. 

Sergeant-at-Arms Canaday headed the Senatorial representation, 
which appeared in the following order: Senators Morrill and 
Cockrell, Sherman and Ransom, Ingalls and Harris, Hampton and 
Manderson, Evarts and Brown, Miller and Palmer, Eustis and 
Dawes, and Teller and Spooner. The ord^r of the Congressional 
committee was ex-Speakers Carlisle and Randall, Messrs. Reed and 
Hiscock, Messrs. Tucker, Long, King and Butterworth, Messrs. 
Wheeler, Lowery, Clark and Bingham. Other members and ex- 
members of Congress in carriages were John T. Heard, Mo. ; A. M. 
Bliss, Brooklyn; Geo. West, New York; J. S. Pindar, New York 
Charles H. Vorhis, New Jersey; Charles O'Neill, Pennsylvania 
A. H. Pettibone, Tennessee; Stephen C. Millard, New York 
William E. English, Indianapolis; A. X. Parker, New York 
N. Goff, West Virginia; John B. Gilfillan, Minnesota; C. H. Gros- 
venor, Ohio: William J. Stone, Missouri; T. R. Merriman, New 
York; W. H. Sowden, Pennsylvania: W. G. Stahlnecker, New 
York; James D. Ward, Chicago; H. G. Burleigh and H. W. Slo- 
cum, New York; Gen. J. Negley, Pennsylvania; John A. Heistand, 
E. S. Osborn, A. Herr Smith, and Leonard Myers, Pennsylvania ; 
Benjamin Le Fevre, Ohio. 

Then came Governor Hill and his staff. Col. Gillette, Adjt. Gen. 
Farnsworth, Inspector General Briggs, Brig. Gen. Wylie, Brig. Gen. 
George E. Field, Surgeon General Bryant, Paymaster General Reed, 
Commissary General Lathrop, Inspector of Rifle Practice Gen. 
Robbins, Col. Frost, Col. Townsend, Col. Cassidy, Col. Tilden and 
Col. Miles. The following carriages were occupied by Senators 
Otis, Keenan, Daggett, Murphy, Campbell, Daly, CuUen, Plunkitt. 
Lowe, Van Schaick, Thacher, Coggeshall, Thomas, Esty and 
Baker. Senator Gibbs was in the party, acting as Lieutenant Gover- 
nor. Then followed the members of the Assembly, as follows : 
Messrs. Arnold, Bailey, Barager, Barnes, Barnum, Brennan, Byrne, 
Cantor, "^Carlisle, Connelly, Curtis, Cutler, Dibble, Driess, PLarl, 
Eiseman,Farrell, Greene, Henry Haggerty, James Haggerty, Har- 
din, HaskeU, S. S. Hawkins, W. M. Hawkins. Heath, Hendricks, 
Hogeboom, Horton, Hubbell, Johnson, Kenny, Kunzenman, 



*i-j(^ LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Liddle, Lindsay, Livingston, McClelland, McEwen, McGolrick, 
Murray, Myers, Oliver, Osborne, Raines, Reilly, Roche, Rocke- 
feller, Rosenthal, Shoemaker, Chas. Smith, Thos. A. Smith, Storm, 
Tynan, Van Allen, Van Duzer, Whitmore, Williams, Windolph and 
ex-Speaker Sheard and Speaker Erwin, and Department Clerks 
Bullock and Barker and Sergeant-at-Arms Talbot. 

Ex-Presidents Hayes and Arthur occupied the following carriage, 
and after them came the foreign Ministers and Consuls in three 
carriages, as follows : The Japanese Minister, Jushu Kuki Rinachi ; 
the Chinese Minister, Au Cheng Ming ; the Consul from Japan, S. 
K. Takashi, and K. Misaki, Secretary of the Legation ; Antonio 
Flores, Minister of Ecuador ; J. G. do Amaral Valente, Minister of 
Brazil '; Oswald Ygarza, Secretary of the Peruvian Legation ; J. 
Frederico Elmore, Minister of Peru ; Cleto Gonzales Viquez, Charge 
d' Affaires of Costa Rica, and A. M. Soteldo, Minister of Venezuela. 
The following carriages were assigned to the diplomatic and 
consular officers under Gen. Grant, as follows : Charles T Gorham, 
Minister to The Hague ; William A. Pile, Minister to Venezuela ; 
E. D. Bassett, Minister to Hayti ; R. C. Shannon, Charge d' Affaires 
in Brazil ; W. A. Burrington, Charge d' Affaires in Brazil ; 
Julius A. Skilton, Consul-General in Mexico ; J. Augustus 
Johnson, Consul General in Beyrout, Syria ; Gen. E. Parker Scam- 
mon. Consul to Prince Edward's Island — the first tutor of General 
Grant at West Point ; David B. Sickels, Consul to Siam ; Mahlon 
Chance, Consul to Nassau ; James Milward, Consul to Ghent ; N. 
J. Newwitter, Consul to Hioga and Osaka, Japan • James M. Trimble, 
Consul to Milan, and William D. Barrington, Consul to Dublin. 

The next part of the carriages was devoted to the representatives 
of different States. Delaware was represented by Gov. C. C. Stock- 
ley and the Rev. James C. Kerr. Then followed Gov. Pattison, of 
Pennsylvania, and his staff; Adjt. General P. M. Guthrie, Assistant 
Adjt. Gen. A. Stanley Hassinger, Inspector General Col. P. Lacey 
Goddard, Inspector of Rifle Practice Col. E. O. Shakespeare, and 
Judge Advocate General Col. John I. Rogers. Gov. Leon Abbett, 
of New Jersey, was accompanied by Adjt. Gen. William S. Stryker, 
Inspector General Willoughby Weston ; Inspector of Rifle Practice 
Bird W. Spencer, and the following aides : Cols. Hendrickson, 
Moore, Thomas, Stevens, Agnew, Ptomaine, Bechtel, Happenheimer, 
Taylor and Perrine. Ex-Governor Joel Parker and a delegation of 
the New Jersey State, officers also occupied carriages. Gov. Henry 
B. Harrison, of Connecticut, had as escort, Adjt. General Stephon, 
R. Smith, Quartermaster General Arthur L. Goodrich, Surgeon 
General Henry P. Geib, Paymaster General Henry C. Dwight, 
Commissary General Frederick Barton, Executive Secretary Arthur 
S. Osborne, and several aides. 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 



Ill 



The representatives of Massachusetts were Governor Robinson, 
Lieutenant Governor Ames, General Dalton, General Holt, General 
Nettleton, Colonel Runneley, Colonel Greenwich, Colonel Whipple, 
and the Governor's Council. With Governor Moody Currier, of 
New Hampshire, were Adjutant General A. D. Ayling, Brigadier 
General Charles Williams, Brigadier General Philip Carpenter Pres- 
ident of the Senate Pike; Senators Bingham, Stevens, and Davis, 
Speaker Aldrich, General Morrison, General J. W. Sturtevant, and 
Stilson Hutchins, of the Assembly. The contingent from Rhode 
Island included Governor George Peabody Wetmore, Adjutant 
General Elisha Dyer, Quartermaster General Charles K. Dennis 
and Judge Advocate General George L. Tower and ten aides, and 
that from Vermont Governor Samuel E. Pingree, Adjutant General 
T. S. Peck, Quartermaster General H. K. Ide, Judge Advocate 
General C. L. Marsh, and Surgeon General W. C. Sherwin and four 
aides. 

Illinois was represented by Governor Richard Oglesby, Lieuten- 
ant-Governor Smith, Adjutant-General J. W. Vance, General E. B. 
Hamilton, Colonel V. Warner, Colonel A. B. Wiggins, Colonel W. 
L. Distin, Colonel Potter, Colonel Bogardus, Colonel Madden, 
Colonel Sexton, General John McNulty, Senator Rogers, Auditor 
Swigert, Assistant Secretary of State Smith, Dr. Rausch, the Hon. 
M. M. Matthews, Chaplain Wilkins, Chaplain of General Grant's 
old Illinois regiment ; General T. S. Mather, who gave General 
Grant his commission as Colonel ; Robert G. Oglesby, the Gover- 
nor's private secretary, and the Hon. Samuel Jones. In the next 
carriages were Governor Robie, of Maine; Adjutant-General S. G. 
Gallagher, Inspector General John J. Richards, Brigadier General 
John Marshal Brown, commanding First Brigade Maine Volunteer 
Militia, and the Hon. Joseph S. Locke, of the Executive Council. 
Michigan was represented by Governor R. A. Alger, Adjutant- 
General Joseph H. Kidd, General George A. Hart, Colonel A. T, 
Bliss, Colonel J. S. Rogers, Colonel Henry Duffield, and Major R. 
Osman ; and Iowa by Governor Sherman, Secretary of State Jack- 
son, General W. F. Robertson, Colonel J. M. Curtis, and Colonel 
B. F. Callender. 

Wisconsin had the next carriages in line, and was represented by 
Governor J. M. Rusk, Ernst J. Timme, Secretary of State; E. C. 
McFetridge, State Treasurer ; L. F. Frisby, Attorney General ; 
Robert Graham, State Superintendent; N. P. Hougen, Railroad 
Commissioner ; P. L. Spooner, Jr., Insurance Commissioner ; the 
Hon. William P. Lyon, Associate Justice United States Supreme 
Court, and Governor Rusk's staff, which included Colonel Charles 
King, Acting Chief of Staff; Brigadier General Henry Palmer, 
Brigadier General E. M. Rogers, Colonel W. C Bailey, Colonel W. 



778 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

S. Stanley, Colonel C. E. Morley, Colonel N. R. Nelson, Colonel 
John Hicks, Colonel F. J. Borchardt, Lieutenant-Colonel F. A. 
Copeland, and Colonel Henry P. Fischer. From Minnesota had 
come Governor L. F. Hubbard, Adjutant-General McCarthy, 
Surgeon General J. H. Murphy, Quartermaster General T. J. 
Wilson, Judge Advocate H. E. Hicke, Colonel Joseph Bobletter. 
Lieutenant-Colonel Charles W. Johnson, and Captain William 
Blakely. 

The Citizens' Committee of One Hundred of the City of New 
York, led by ex-Governor A. B. Cornell and ex-Collector Robert- 
son, occupied the carriages next in line. Following them came the 
Heads of Bureaus of the War Department, Adjutant-General Drum, 
Surgeon-General Murray, Quartermaster-General Holabird, In- 
spector-General Newton, General Macfeeland, General Rochester, 
Chief of Ordnance Whitmore, General Seibert, Chief Signal Officer 
Jones and the Heads of Bureaus of the Navy Department, Commo- 
dore Sicord, Commodore Schley, Chief of Construction Wilson, 
Surgeon Van Riper, Engineer Snyder, and Lieutenants Kelly and 
Dyer. The next carriage was occupied by three members of Gen- 
eral Sheridan's staff. General McFeely, Colonel Davis and Colonel 
Sheridan, and the next by General Schofield and Mayor Sawyer. 
General Merritt and staff, of West Point, were next, followed by 
Admiral Jouett and staff General John C. New, General J. S. 
Williams, Captain Faunce, Clinton B. Fisk, William H. Lyon, 
Albert K. Smiley and E. Whittlesey, the Indian Commissioner, 
rode next. The carriages following were occupied by United States 
District Judge Brown, United States Commissioner Shields, United 
States District Attorney Dorsheimer, Collector Hedden, and Sur- 
veyor Beattie. Then came the Board of Managers of the Soldiers' 
Home — General W. B. Franklin, General T. W. Hyde, General 
Charles Negley, and Arthur Sewell. Then followed more than a 
score of carriages occupied by Mayors of cities and other municipal 
officers. 

Although the carriages were driven four abreast (except those 
near the head of the line) this part of the parade was very wearying 
to the tired spectators ; but it contained a larger proportion of dis- 
tinguished public men than is usually gathered together, and the 
monotony of the procession was relieved by the recognition of these 
and the hurried passing of the word down the line that thronged 
the sidewalks. General Hancock, at the head of the procession, 
reached Fiftieth street on Fifth avenue at eleven o'clock. Three 
hours afterwards the President's carriage had just passed, and in a 
few minutes thereafter thousands of spectators left the streets. 
Some of them only S'ought shade and a temporary rest; others were 
homeward bound, satisfied that they had seen enough, and still 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 779 

Others, numbered by thousands, hurried to the elevated railroad 

stations to get transported to Riverside Park. 

The crowds were greatly reduced, therefore, when the third grand 

division appeared. This was composed of veteran organizations, as 

follows : 

Commander, General Daniel E. Sickles ; Staff, Major General 

Daniel Butterfield, chief of staff and senior aide ; Brigadier Generals 

Henry E. Tremaine, James S. Frazen Samuel K. Schwenk, U. S. 

A. ; Colonels Joel Wilson, H. L. Potter ; Lieutenant Colonels, 

Henry C. Perley, A. d'Oorville ; Brevet Captain Edward Brown; 

Captains, Matthew Stewart, J. M. Semler ; Lieutenant John A. 

Nickels, U. S. N.; Major J. J. Comstock, Brevet Major General 

Charles H. T. Collis, Brevet Brigadier General T. R. Tannatt, Lieu- 
tenant Colonel J. R. Leslie, Major Joseph Forbes, Captain B. F. 
Jackson, U. S. A., Captain Thomas J. Robinson, Captain Jack 
Crawford and James J. Keenan. 

Following the staff was a mounted escort from his old command, 
the Third Army Corps. 

Next followed Major General J. C. Robinson, U. S. A., and the 
retired officers of the Army, Navy and Marine Corps in carriages. 
Among them were many aged veterans. The Military Order of 
the Loyal Legion of the United States were next in line. Their 
delegation was not a large one. Many of them were on duty as 
staff officers, and many marched with other organizations of vet- 
erans to which they were attached. At their head was their 
draped banner of blue, on which, in gilt letters, were written 
the words: *' The Order instituted April 9, 1865. Commandery 
of New York." Li their ranks were many officers who had come 
from a distance to march at the funeral of their old com- 
mander. Sixteen officers of the Sixth Maryland Regiment, dressed 
in Confederate gray, marched behind these, attracting much atten- 
tion. 

After them came the Army societies — the Army of the Potomac, 
Army of the Tennessee and the Army of the Cumberland. These 
were not largely represented, many of their members being in the 
ranks of the Grand Army. 

The Grand Army of the Republic followed. At its head was its 
commander-in-chief, Major General S. S. Burdette, of Washington, 
with a brilliant staff, constituted as follows : 

Selden Connor, of Maine, Senior Vice Commander; T. H. Stew- 
art, of Ohio, Chaplain ; John Cameron, of Washington, Adjutant- 
General; John Taylor, of Pennsylvania, Quartermaster-General; 
Fred. Brackett, of Washington, Assistant Adjutant-General, and 
General C. H. Grosvenor, Judge Advocate. Aides — Harrison 
Dingman, Senior Aide ; Winfield S. Chase, George McGown, H. 



y8o LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

M. Gartlan, W. L. Scott, F. M. Edgerton, Charles Richardson, 
John Morrison, L. H. Stafford and Robert Wilson. 

A delegation from Eben N. Ford Post, No. 336, of Pennsylvania, 
then followed, 200 strpng, and after them came William Downing 
Post, No. 435, of 500 men. The Connecticut G. A. R. men, com- 
manded by Frank D. Sloat and W. H. Stowes, adjutant, marched 
behind in brilliant array to the number of 500, including a band of 
thirty pieces. Then followed 500 Massachusetts men, commanded 
by John W. Hersey, with Alfred C. Monroe as adjutant. The New 
Jersey men, 3 500 strong, commanded by H. M. Nevins and John 
L. Wheeler as adjutant, immediately followed the Massachusetts 
men. Then came the Kit Carson Post of the District of Columbia, 
with 300 men, commanded by Junior Vice Commander J. Wisner. 
A delegation of lOO men from Illinois, commanded by W. W. Berry, 
followed. Then came 20 Wisconsin veterans, Commander Davison ; 
Iowa, Phil. Kearney Post, 10 men ; Kansas, 10 men, Commander J. 
McCarthy; Ohio, lOO men. Commander R. B. Brown; Maine, 25 
men, James A. Hall, Commander ; Virginia, 20 men, commanded 
by PI. De B. Clay ; California, 10 men. Commander W. A. Seamans; 
20 men, commanded by M. M. Collis, from New Hamipshire ; a del- 
egation from Vermont of 10 men ; a delegation of 50 men from 
Maryland, Wilson Post, No. i, commanded by Past Senior Vice 
Commander Ross, came next, followed by a delegation of 15 men 
from Minnesota, a delegation from Indiana ofB. J. Crosswart Post, 
No. 150, and Ruth Post, No. 13 ; from Colorado, 10 men, comman- 
ded by A. V. Bohn ; from Delaware, 10 men ; from Missouri 
delegations from Frank P. Blair Post, No. i, and Ransom Post, No. 
131; 25 men from Texas; 10 men from Tennessee, and Georgia 
Maynard Post, 10 men. 

The Posts of the Department of New York followed. At their 
head rode Commander H. Clay Hall with the following staff: 

William R.Stoddard, Senior Vice Commander; William J. Cronyn, 
Medical Director; E. L.Allen, Chaplain; C. P. Clarke, Assistant 
Adjutant General; John H. Walker, Assistant Quartermaster Gen- 
eral ; Joseph Egole, Inspector General ; Joseph I. Sayles, Judge 
Advocate ; General Frank Z. Jones, Chief Mustering Officer, and 
twenty aides. 

In this command there were over 10,000 men. The out-of-town 
Posts commanded by Senior Vice Department Commander Charles 
W. Cowtan, assisted by his aides, Louis L. Robbins, J. H. Nason, 
Max Reece, J. S. Cavendy, R. S. Swan and James T. Burdick, 
marched first, in the followmg order : 

O'Rourke Post, No. i, of Rochester; L. O. Morris Post, No. 121, 
Albany; Shaw's Lawrence Post, No. 378, Portchester; Richmond 
Post, No. 524, Mariner's Harbor; R. G. Shaw Post, No. 112, Staple- 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 781 

ton; Lenhart Post, No. 163, Tottenville ; Ringgold Post, No. 283, 
Long Island City; George Huntsman Post, No. 50, Flushing; 
Adam Worth Post, No. 451, College Point; R. J. Marks Post, No. 
500, Newtown; D. B. Mott Post, No. 527, Freeport ; Mose:. Bald- 
win' Post, No. 544, Hempstead; Morrell Post, No. 144, Sing Sing ; 
W. P. Burnett Post, No. 496, Tarrytown ; Howland Post, No. 48, 
Fishkill; Abram Vosburg Post, No. 95, Peekskill ; Hamilton Post, 
No. 20, Poughkeepsie ; Cromwell Post, No. 466, White Plains ; 
F. M. Cummins Post, No. 176, Goshen; W. W. Hoyt Post, No. 276, 
Corning. 

The second division then followed, with F. Cocheu as marshal, 

These Posts were also from out of town, and came in the follow- 
ing order : 

Abel Smith Post, No. 435 ; Harry Lee Post, No. 210, R. C. 
Stearns, commander; Mansfield Post, No. 35, Martin Short, com- 
mander ; Charter B. Doane Post, No. 499, T. C. McKean, com- 
mander ; T. S. Dakin Post, No. 206, Chas. G. Hall, commander; 
Rankin Post, No. 10, W. P. Wild, commander ; Mallery Post, No. 
84, T. M. K. Mills, commander; German Metternich Post, No. 122, 
Charles Fredericks, commander; Frank Mead Post, No. 16, John 
Moeser, commander; C. D. McKenzie Post, No. 399, Alex. Thomp- 
son, commander; Barbara Fritchie Post, No. 11, James Freelan, 
commander; G. K. Warren Post, No. 286, John W. Cunningham, 
commander ; James H. Perry Post, No. 89, H. W. Hughes, com- 
mander; L. M. Hamilton Post, No. 152, John W. Fox, commander; 
N. S. Ford Post, No. 161, Alexander J. Fisher, commander; S. F. 
Dupont Post, No. 187, David Acker, commander ; Devin Post, No. 
148, L. E. McLaughlin, commander; Kerswell Post, No. 149, 
John Young, commander; Thatford Post, No. 3, Edward Beck, 
commander; Gushing Post, No. 231, C. H. Smith, commander ; W. 
L. Garrison Post, No. 207, John Little, commander ; Winchester 
Post, No. 197, A. M. Clark, commander; B. F. Middleton Post, 
No. 500, R. W. L'Homm.edieu, commander; G. C. Strong Post, No. 
534, Charles C. Curtis, commander ; Caspar Tripp Post, No. 537, 
J. H. Sprenger, commander; William Gurney Post, No. 538, W. W. 
Hulse, commander. 

Bennett W. Ellison commanded the New York City posts which 
came next. His staff was as follows : 

George F. Hopper, adjutant-general and chief of staff; Gregory 
W. O'Neill, assistant adjutant-general ; Benjamin F. Finley, assistant 
adjutant-general; F:ibert O. Smith, quartermaster-general; Fred- 
erick S. Gibbs, inspector-general ; Stephen G. Cook, M. D., surgeon- 
general ; Charles Gunther. paymaster-general ; Rastus S. Ransom, 
judge-advocate-general; Benjamin J. Levy, commissary-general; 
Thos. Graham, chief of engineers ; the Rev. Thos. W. Conway, 



ySl LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

chaplain ; J. H. Green, chief of cavalry ; Henry A. Beatty, chief of 
ordnance; Wm. E. Van Wick, chief signal officer; J. Searing, 
assistant inspector-general ; Jos. H. Stiner, assistant judge-advocate ; 
Francis A. Utter, M. D., assistant surgeon. Aides de-camp— C. J. 
Cambrelling, Frank Bury, C. H. Hankinson, Geo. P. Osborn, Ed. 
Burns, Hugh M. Gartland, Geo. Pfitzer, George M. Dusenbury, 
Charles M. Granger, Benjamin Van Riper, Robert J. Clyde, Fred. 
W. Ritschy, Patrick McKenna, William Clancy, James Bryan, E. P. 
Lippincott, Louis Schlamp, Daniel McDonald, Sylvester Hegeman, 
Lehman Israels, Richard P. Wheeler, Joseph H. Meredith, Henry 
S. Sprall, John Dvvyer, M. D., William O'Meagher, Barclay 
Gallagher, James McConnell, Martin Sadler, Theodore S. Dumont. 
The four sub-divisions of this command were respectively com- 
manded by James B. Horner, Clarke H. McDonald, Michael Duffy 
and Samuel H. Paulding. They marched as follows: 

First Division— ?hil Kearney Post, No. 8, James W. Brinck, com- 
mander ; Abraham Lincoln Post, No. 13, Benjamin J. Levy, com- 
mander; Sumner Post, No. 24. James B. Black, commander; James 
C. Rice Post, No. 29, George R. Bevans, commander; George G. 
Meade Post, No. 38, A. Franklin Lawson, commander ; Robert 
Anderson Post, No. 53, Joseph B. Lord, commander; Wadsworth 
Post, No. yy, James P. Rogers, commander ; Oliver Tilden Post, 
No. 96, J. Wesley Smith, commander; E. A. Kimball Post, No. 100, 
James M. Folan, commander; John A. Dix Post, No. 135, Thomas 
B. Odell, commander; Lafayette Post, No. 140, D. J. Mallon, com- 
mander ; Judson Kilpatrick Post No. 143, E. J. Atkinson, com- 
mander; Alexander Hamilton Po^t, No. 182, James A. Colvin, 
commander. 

Second Division — George Washington Post, No. 103; Sedgwick 
Post, No. 186, John Kerill, commander ; John A. Andrew Post, No. 
234, James B. Lee, commander; Thaddeus Stevens Post, No. 255, 
Charles W. McKie, commander; E. D. Morgan Post, No. 307, 
Samuel Minnes, commander; H. B. Hidden Post, No. 320, Jerome 
Bell, commander ; A. S. Williams Post, No. 894, John F. Nesbitt, 
commander; John E. Bendix Post, No. 432, John Humphreys, 
commander; Fred. Hecker Post, No. 408, Albert Fest, commander; 
Veteran Post, No. 436, William J. Holmes, commander; U. L. 
Farnsworth Post, No. 458, Charles McK. Leoser, commander; 
E. H. Wade Post, No. 520, John A. Blair, commander ; Post No. 557. 
Third Division— Y^oXX.^?. Post, No. 32, Henry Klaeber, commander ; 
William D. Kennedy Post, No. 42, John C. Limbeck, commander; 
Reno Post, No. 44, W.Vredenburgh, commander ; J. L. Riker Post, 
No. 62, John Sciimidlrng, commander; Ellsworth Post, No. 67, 
Jacob Wilcox, commander; General James Shields Post, No. 69, 
John Beattie, commander; Cameron Post, No. 79, John S. Phillips, 



BORNE TO HIS REST. yS^ 

commander; John A. Rawlins Post, No. 80, Hugh M. Gartlan 
commander; Joe Hooker Post, No. 128, Philip Ascher, commander' 
/^ourt/i Dizusion—DMgrGn Post, No. 113, William McEntee 
commander; Vanderbilt Post, No. 136, John D. Terry, commander,' 
Steinwehr Post, No. 192, W. Krzyzanowski, commander: Gilsa 
Post, No. 264, Christian Heentz. commander; Andrew Jackson Post 
No. 300, C. H. Lutjens, commander; Adam Goss Post No 330' 
w ,?• ^' J-onerg-en, commander; Michael Corcoran Pos't, No. 427' 
William De Lacy, commander ; Musicians' Post, No 4;-?- Naval 
Post, No. 516, Elbert M. Warne, commander; Post No. 559. 

VETERAN ORGANIZATIONS OF MANY KINDS. 

The veteran regimental organizations from this and other States 
to the number of 1500 men formed in three brigades, commanded 
respectively by Brigadier-General James R. O'Beirne, Colonel 
Kafferty. and Brigadier-General F. B. Spinola. The First Bricrade 
was led by the ;9th Regiment Highlanders New York Volunteers 
dressed in Highland suits, to the number of 150 men The zd 
Veteran Fire Zouaves (4th Excelsior) followed, 50 men, preceded 
by a drum corps of forty pieces. Then came the Anderson Zouaves 
62d New York Volunteers, in uniform, 75 men; the 6Qth Veteran 
Corps, 70 men; 5th New York Volunteers, 50 men, all in uniform. 
Ihe 1st and loth Veteran Associations, Ntw York Volunteers fol- 
lowed in citizens' clothes with appropriate badges of mourning on 
their coats and immediately after them were the Garibaldi Guards 
39th New York Volunteers, and the Continental Guards of New York' 
containing respectively 40 and 25 men. The Chicago Union Veteran 
Club of 30 members brought up the rear of the First Brigade 

The Second Brigade, commanded by Colonel Thomas Rafferty 
followed, led by Hawkins' Zouaves, 9th New York Volunteers 150 
men. Following them came the United Association. New York 
Volunteer Veterans, 50 men ; 36th New York Volunteers, 40 men • 
and the 40th New York Volunteers, Mozart Regiment, accom- 
panied by Kilpatrick's Drum Corps of fifty pieces. The Tammany 
Regiment, 42d New York Volunteers, came next. Following them 
were these associations: 90th New York Volunteer Veterans 80 
men; 133d New York Volunteer Veterans, 70 men; 133th New 
York Volunteer Veterans, 60 men; 45th New York Volunteer 
Veterans, 70 men; four associations of Mexican war veterans in 
unitorm. The Sons of Veterans, Department of New York, brought 
up the rear of the Second Brigade with 70 men. 
1 '^^^ Third Brigade, commanded by General B. F. Spinola, fol- 
lowed. Ihe Union Veteran Association, First New Jersey Volun- 
teers, commanded by George N. Tibbie, 300 men. led the brigade 
followed by the National Veteran Association of Chicago 30 men- 



784 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

New Bedford Veteran Association, 25 men; Philadelphia Veteran^ 
Association, ii men, and the Veterans of the Regular Army, 150 
men. After them came the 7th Regiment Veterans, 100 men, 
Colonel L. W. Winchester, commanding; 22d Regiment Veterans. 
150 men. Colonel George W. Laird commanding; 14th Regiment 
Veteran 'Association, 70 men; 9th Regiment Veterans, 50 men. 
The Soldiers and Sailors' Union of Brooklyn, and the Soldaten- 
und-Matrossen Union of the same city, E. M. Crossant, commander, 
followed next. The War Veteran Association, 14th Regiment of 
Brooklyn, Colonel E. B. Fowler commander, brought up the rear. 

The Civic Division was formed as follows : Major General M. T. 
McMahon. Aides — General Anson G. McCook, Frederick S. 
Gibbs, Colonel John W. Jacobus, Colonel John K. Perley, Senator 
Michael C. Murphy, ex-Coroner Jacob Hess, Colonel Alfred Wag- 
staff, Colonel Charles Freicbel, Colonel Henry C. Perley, ex-Judge 
Solon B. Smith, Captain John C. Calhoun, Colonel A. J. Dickinson, 
Colonel William C. Boone, Colonel Robert L. Bennett, Colonel 
Samuel Truesdale, General James R. O'Beirne, Major William 
Ouincy, Captain William A. Kirtland, Colonel John W. Marshall, 
Colonel John O'Byrne, Captain James M. Brady, Major Thomas 
Jackson, Colonel Henry Huss, Surgeon David D. Teal, John A. 
Shields, Hans S. Beattie, Colonel George F. Hopper, Coroner Ferd. 
Levy, Captain Johnston Briggs, Colonel Charles G. Otis, General M. 
T. Donohue, Colonel John Tracy, Mr. F. U. Shepard, Colonel Henry 
Watterson, Mr. Charles P. Tower and Mr. Henry M. Dickinson. 

FIRST SUBDIVISION. 

Colonel W. C. Church, commanding. 

Society of the Cincinnati. 

Chamber of Commerce. 

New York Historical Society. 

Union League Club. 

Aztec Club. 

United States Christian Commission. 

Ex-Diplomatic and Consular Officers. 

Citizens' Law and Order League, Boston, Mass. 

Chamber of Commerce, New Haven, Conn. 

SECOND SUBDIVISION. 

Colonel John W. Marshall, commanding. 

New York Stock Exchange. 

New York Cotton Exchange. 

New York Produce Exchange. 

New York Board of Trade and Transportation. 

New York Mercantile Exchange. 

Maritime Association, Port of New York. 

New York Metal Exchange. 

New York Real Estate Exchange. 

New York Board of Fire Underwriters. 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 785 

THIRD SUBDIVISION. 

Colonel Charles G. Otis, commanding. 

Republican County Committee. 

Young Men's Republican Clubs, of New York. 

Kings County, Jersey City and Baltimore. 

Lincoln League. 

Third Ward Lincoln Club. 

FOURTH SUBDIVISION. 

Colonel John W. Jacobus, commanding. 

Association of Exempt Firemen. 

Sons of Veterans. 

Highland Guard. 

Knights of Pythias. 

Knights of Sherwood Forest. 

Excelsior Council, No. 14, O. U. A. M. 

Valley Forge Council, No. 2. O. U. A. M. 

Societa del Fraterna Amore. 

Excelsior Association of Jersey City. 

This division contained many distinguished men in carriages. The 
society of Cincinnati was represented as follows : 

John Schuyler, Alexander J. Clinton, Edward W. Tapp, Thomas 
W. Christie, James S. Van Cortlandt, William Linn Keese, J. B. 
Westbrook, H. T. Drowne, John W. Greaton and F. J. Hunting- 
don, of New York ; Henry W. Holden and D. B. Kirby, of Rhode 
Island ; and Dr. Hermann Burgin and William C. Spencer, of New- 
Jersey. In the first carriage was borne the silk banner of the so- 
ciety, heavily draped with black crape. 

The United States Christian Commission was represented as fol- 
lows : George H. Stuart, President; James Grant, Secretary; 
Thomas K. Cree, Secretary of the International Committee ; the 
Rev. George J. Mingins, of New York ; the Rev. Dr. Fernley, the 
Rev. Dr. McLaughlin, John Patterson, Arthur M. Burton, the Rev. 
Dr. Murph3^ and William L. Mactier, all of Philadelphia; also 
Count Edward Grass Piickie, of Berlin. 

Following is a list of the ex- Confederate soldiers who rode in 
carriages: General Robert D. Lilley, of "Stonewall" Jackson's 
Corps; General W. W. Loring, of Florida; Colonel John E. 
McCaull, of the Virginia Scouts ; Major W. H. Quincey, of North 
Carolina; Major William Hancock Clark, of General Ewell's staff; 
Colonel W. L. Duff, of the Eighth Mississippi; Private Joseph H. 
Francis, of Morgan's old regiment, Alabama; Sergeant A. M. 
Davies, of the Thirty-fourth Virginia ; Major Thomas A. Young, 
of Mahone's Brigade, Virginia ; Lieutenant H. E. Kimberly, of the 
First Maryland ; Lieutenant W. H. Montague, of the Confederate 
steamship Rappahannock ; Private John T. Clark, of the Wirt 
Adams Cavalry; Colonel John Anderson, of the Forty-ninth North 
Carolina ; Colonel W. B. Sterritt, Missouri State Guards ; Captain 
50 



786 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

W. M. Conner, Dr. G. E. Sussdorff, surgeon on duty at Richmond, 
and John Halburt, Washington Artillery, of Augusta, Ga. The 
badge worn by the ex-Confederates was of a peculiarly neat design, 
consisting of blue and gray ribbons folded over crape and sur- 
mounted by a white and black shield in silk, with the word 
*' Grant " woven in a diagonal bar. 

Following the political organizations came the fourth subdivision 
of the civic division. Colonel John W. Jacobus was in command. 
First came the Association of Exempt Firemen, two hundred strong. 
It was composed of men who did service forty odd years ago. 
Prominent in the ranks was Harry Howard, once chief of the old 
volunteer Fire Department. There were also in the ranks Zophar 
Mills, President, and David Milligan and John R. Piatt, Vice- 
Presidents, James T. Walkins, George W. Wheeler, Francis Hogge- 
born, J. DeCosta, George W. Cook, Joseph Miles, Thomas Mont- 
gomery, M. J. Fogarty, Jacob Berge and James Elknes were also in 
line. 

The Volunteer Firemen's Association, some 300 strong, with 
John Decker, the last of the chiefs of the Volunteer Fire Depart- 
ment, acting as marshal, came next. They walked along with the 
solemn tread of men who had faced death but did not fear it. Among 
their numbers were Charles Brice, Patrick McGonegal, William 
Searing, Isaac Brush, W. R. W. Chambers, William Forman, W. J. 
Coffman, J. W. Hudson, E. P. Durham and Thomas C. Cornelius. 
The firemen were followed by eleven camps of the Sons of 
Veterans. There were over 700 men in line. Each camp was in 
full uniform and had its drum corps. The whole division was under 
command of Raphael Tobias, assisted by Adjutant General S. M. 
Bower. The camps were commanded as follows : 

New York Division, William Brennan ; Camp No. 3, Captain G. 
Hatfield ; Camp No. 7, Captain J. D. O'Brien ; Camp No. 8, Captain 
William Brocklaw ; Camp No. 9, Captain J. F. Madden ; Camp No. 
II, Captain F. B. Couch; Camp No. 15, Captain G. A. Buncker ; 
Camp No. 17, from Portchester, N. Y., Captain F. Knott; Camp 
No. 25, Captain S. P. Ely ; Camp No. 26, Captain W. A. Flagger ; 
Camp No. 8, Captain J. Kearnes ; Camp No. 14, Lieutenant J. Daly. 
Following the Sons of Veterans came the Highland Guards of 
the New York Caledonian Club. They were about fifty strong 
and arrayed in full Highland costume. There were many different 
plaids represented, signifying from what particular Scotti-sh family 
the wearer came. Their appearance added variety to the procession. 
Their funeral march was played upon bagpipes. The guard was 
commanded by Colonel C. Nicholson, of the Sword Battalion, and 
Sergeant J. S. MacGillwray. 

The Knights of Pythias turned out two hundred men dressed in 



BORNE TO HIS REST. y^'J 

full regalia and accompanied by a brass band. There were repre- 
sentatives not only from the lodges in this city, but also from lodges 
in various sections of New Jersey and from Brooklyn. Colonel J. 
Hearnes was in charge. Among the number were : 

Sir Knight Johnson, Captain Philip Ewing, Lieutenant McLean 
and Lieutenant John E. Greenfield of the Unity Lodge; Captain 
P. F. Thomas and Lieutenant Sutterly, of the Ashland ; Captain A. 
V. P. Bush and Lieutenant Hoyt, of the Brooklyn ; Captain Thorn 
Hicks, of the Allegheny; Captain Rodger, of the Black Prince, and 
Captain William Pintard, of the Monmouth County (N. J.) Lodge. 

The Knights of Sherwood Forest turned out 1 50 men in full uni- 
form. The Supreme Commander of the United States was in charge. 
His aids were Past Commander W. A. Desborough and Com- 
manders T. ¥. Gaffney and C. F. Hughes. There were delegations 
from Jersey City and New Haven. Excelsior Council, No. 14, of 
United American Mechanics, marched 100 strong. They wore the 
paraphernalia of their society. S. L Reeve acted as marshal. 

Then came the Valley Forge Council, No. 2, of the L O. U. A. M. 
They mustered a hundred strong. John W. Cull was in charge, 
assisted by F. M. Prout and G. H. Adams. 

The head of the procession reached the grave at 1.15, the cata- 
falque three hours later, at 4.25, and the organizations drew up in 
order on the hillside. At One Hundred and Fifth Street General 
Hancock's horse was overcome, and the General from there drove 
in a carriage to the tomb. 

As the head of the procession reached the tomb the sky was 
overcast with clouds. Shadows and patches of unrestrained sun- 
light made a checkered surface over the broad gravel-surfaced plaza. 
The Hudson was a strip of blue seen through a wavy mist of green 
made by the moving leaves of the trees on the bluff. Specks of 
bright color were furnished by waving flags and in the dresses of the 
ladies who formed a portion of the solid wall of humanity that hemmed 
in the noble burial-place. The dull gray of the newly-gravelled 
drives died out on the borders of green banks. Everywhere were 
the contrasts of light and shadow; of black clothed officials and 
gray-coated park officers ; of the newly-made tomb and the crowded 
'* grand stands." The men-of-war in the river were firing funeral 
guns, and the tolling of the Harlem church bells came up out of the 
valley, but mixed with these sounds was the hum of ten thousand 
subdued voices. 

A view from the summit of the little knoll, in the west bank of 
which the temporary tomb had been built, disclosed on the north 
the heavily draped Claremont Hotel, black from roof to cellar. On 
the west you looked out upon the Hudson, where were anchored 
the fleet of Government ships. On the south extended the River- 



^88 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

side Drive, black bordered with sight- seers and dotted with the fig- 
ures of the mounted police, and on the west two enormous stands 
arose crowded with people. At your feet, as you stood facing the 
west, was the homely tomb — a barrel-shaped brick structure. Just 
in front were a few rows of wooden benches. There was but one 
occupant of these seats, a lady in a white muslin dress, who it was< 
said had been sitting patiently there in the sun since 8 o'clock in 
the morning. 

It was now past 1 o'clock. Suddenly there was an uplifting of a 
cloud of dust on the drive to the south, and out of it presently 
issued a company of mounted men. They were police officers 
under command of Sergeants Revelle and Wallace. As they gal- 
loped up the broad road the spectators on the grand stands arose in 
their seats and the multitude that was scattered promiscuously 
through the Park rushed to the edge of the drive. The mounted 
officers reined in their horses at a point just east of where the tomb 
was situated, and as the dust subsided the red and yellow plumes 
of the officers of the commanding General's staff were seen nodding 
down the road. As the head of the procession drew near it was 
seen that an open carriage led the way. It was drawn by two bay 
horses and driven by a coachman in green livery. It halted under 
an oak tree at the southern edge of the plaza, and then arose 
from the cushioned seat the imposing figure of General W. S. Han- 
cock, who, standing in the carriage, surveyed the field for a moment 
or two, and then resuming his seat, gave orders for the line to ad- 
vance. 

Following General Hancock were the members of his staff and 
numerous aides. General Fitz Hugh Lee, wearing civilian's clothes, 
rode at the bridle hand of General Gordon. Making a detour from 
the main line, the General and his staff slowly approached the 
tomb, the regular troops led by a battery of artillery continuing 
along the Riverside avenue and skirting the hill between the tomb 
and the Claremont Hotel. General Hancock was received as he 
alighted from his carriage by Superintendent Murray, Inspector 
Dilks and President Crimmins, and was conducted to the tomb, 
which he critically inspected. Meanwhile the troops were moving 
up from the south. First came, after the artillery, three companies 
of regulars, the dull blue of their uniforms made more dingy by 
contrast with the splendid scarlet-coated Marine Band, of Wash- 
ington, that followed them. Next came the marines, and after 
them the " sailor bovs " of the navy, white to their waists. By this 
time the artillery had traversed the circular drive which sweeps 
around the Claremont inn and had reached a point on the west 
roadway of the Park immediately opposite the tomb. The blue- 
clad infantry and the flaming Washington band had taken a position 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 789 

on the knoll a little way to the north. It was a splendid massing 
of color under the great green oak trees. A bugle call set the mif^ 
itary men in motion. Guns were unlimbered and red-trimmed 
officers darted hither and thither. General Hancock had completed 
his inspection of the tomb, and stood looking on in silence and on 
foot. The members of his staff and his mounted aides moved back 
away out of sight among the trees at the north of the bluff There 
was a momentary lull in the movements of the military, and pres- 
ently General Shaler, accompanied by a mounted aide, came sweep- 
ing over the plaza. A hasty conference with a member of Han- 
cock's staff was followed by an order for the removal of the artillery 
from the post which they had taken. Again the bugle sounded, 
again there was a dashing here and there of mounted officers, and 
then the guns of the artillery were dragged away to a point on the 
bluff north of the Claremont. 

The head of Shaler's command now came into viev/ down the 
drive. Gilmore's band, led by a drum-major who sweated beneath 
an enormous bear's hat, "Mr. Gilmore himself holding an E-flat cor- 
net in the first rank, preceded the Twenty-second Regiment. The 
men were evidently tired, and their march was ragged. They 
moved along the western roadway, past the knoll on which were 
grouped the regulars, and were massed close by the artillery. After 
them came the splendid Seventh. There was no music, the red- 
plumed bandsmen carrying their brass baggage listlessly in their 
hands. The only sound, as they moved up towards the tomb, was 
the swish, swish of their feet on the loosely-gravelled road and the 
noisy blasts of the ships in the stream. The Seventh halted when 
the centre of tlie column was directly opposite the vault, and facing 
to the right formed a splendid solid wall of gray and white between 
the open plain and the grass-covered river bluff As far as Colonel 
Clark and his command were concerned the funeral ceremonies 
might begin at any moment. 

But the funeral ceremonies did not begin. There was an unac- 
countable delay ; it lasted through minutes and dragged into hours. 
For a time the Seventh stood patiently at attention, but compassion 
for the wearied men finally led to an order to break ranks, and the 
several companies, stacking their guns, took refuge under the tiees 
and waited for a call to arms. General Hancock went up from the 
hot plaza and sat down on a bench under the trees on the knoll at - 
the back of the tomb, where he was presently joined by Mayor 
Grace, President Sanger of the Board of Aldermen, and General 
Fitz John Porter and other members of the Board of Police Com- 
missioners. The people on the grand stands on the opposite" side 
of the drive impatient of the delay left their seats and endeavored 
to overrun the drive. There was an incessant struggle between the 



790 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



people and the police, above the confusion of which rose the shrill 
voices of enterprising peddlers and hucksters. There was near by 
a rudely erected stand, the benches upon which had for some reason 
not become occupied. It was draped, as were they all, in black 
and white rags, and contained across its face the motto, ''We 
Mourn our Loss." This motto was taken by the idle crowd to refer 
to the mental condition of the owners of the luckless stand, and 
served as a source for many jests. Solemn as should have been 
the scene, it was impossible to lose sight of many amusing features. 
These were the incidents and accidents inseparable from the collec- 
tion of a large crowd. 

It lacked just five minutes of half-past four o'clock when the 
necessarily slow moving catafalque with its immediate cortege came 
in sight. It had about the appearance of a civic funeral as it turned 
from the broad drive into the roadway that led to the tomb. Its 
military aspect was nearly lost in the stream of carriages which 
constituted its vanguard. There were twenty or more of these ve- 
hicles, which, massed together as they approached the tomb, shut 
out for a time all view of the uniformed men who followed behind. 
Music was heard but the band was unseen. The music was Chopin's 
regal funeral march. 

The leading carriages became jumbled together in the scant 
space between the tomb and the seats which had been prepared for 
distinguished guests. It was necessary to halt the funeral car when 
within a few rods of its destination in order to secure a disentangle- 
ment of these carriages. To add to the confusion the Marine Band, 
of Washington, which was stationed on a knoll just north of the 
tomb, began to play a dirge while the other band was still playing 
the Chopin march. The effect was that of utter discord, which 
robbed the moment of much of its solemnity. Neither band would 
desist of its own accord, and no one was found to give orders for a 
restoration of harmony. 

It was amid this discordant and unnatural din of clashing and 
unattuned instruments that the funeral car drew up in front of the 
tomb. It had been intended by the Park Commisioners that the 
President and other distinguished persons should take their places 
on the platform at the west of the drive, but either through a mis- 
understanding of orders or a natural desire to be as close to the 
tomb as possible, they all, upon alighting from their carriages, con- 
gregated about the open door of the little vault. President Cleve- 
land and the members of his Cabinet found themselves engulfed in 
a stream of lesser dignitaries. The pall-bearers forced their way 
with difficulty to the door of the tomb, and ranged themselves in 
two lines on either side of the cedar box which was waiting to re- 
ceive the casket. Grand Army officers crowded thickly in upon 



dTuraii 




1 



//: 






792 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

the distinguished group, and when the procession of Senators came 
to take their places at the door of the tomb it could with difficulty 
force its way through the assembled crowd. Senators Sherman, 
Morrill, Ransom and Ingalls were in the front. Meantime the sons 
of General Grant, with the heavily veiled ladies of the family, were 
waiting patiently on the outskirts of the throng for an opportunity 
to approach nearer to the door of the sepulchre. Superintendent 
Murray cleared the way and opened a passage for these intimates 
of the deceased, who were crowded in upon the narrow space di- 
rectly in front of the President and the members of his Cabinet, 
there being no other place for them to stand. The casket contain- 
ing the remains of General Grant was meantime being removed 
from the funeral car, and was carried by a few members of the 
Meade Post and tenderly placed in the cedar case at the door of 
the tomb. 

The impressive burial services, according to the rite of the Grand 
Army of the Republic, were then begun. Just at this moment ex- 
Presidents Arthur and Hayes drove up to the tomb, and a way was 
opened for them by Inspector Dilks. Nobody in the body of 
mourners at the tomb seemed to notice their arrival, and they stood 
side by side with uncovered heads behind the officious undertaker 
and his assistants, without recognition from the distinguished 
gathering about them. 

The commander of the Meade Post stood at the head of the 
coffin, the chaplain at the foot and the others were ranged about it. 
When all was ready Post Commander Alexander Reed said : " As- 
sembled to pay the last sad tribute of respect to our late commander 
and illustrious comrade, U. S. Grant, let us unite in prayer. The 
chaplain will invoke the divine blessing." Rev. C. Irvine Wright, 
the Post Chaplain, then offered the following prayer : 

" God of battles! Father of all! amidst this mournful assemblage we seek 
Thee with whom there is no death. Open every eye to behold him who 
changed the night of death into morning. In the depths^ of our hearts we 
would hear the celestial word, T am the Resurrection and the Life; he that 
believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.' As comrade after 
comrade departs and we march on with ranks broken, help us to be faithfu^ 
unto Thee, and to each other. We beseech Thee, look in mercy on the widows 
and children of deceased comrades, and with thine own tenderness console 
and comfort those bereaved by this event, which calls us here. Give them the 
•oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.' 
Heavenly Father, bless and save our country, with the freedom and peace of 
righteousness, and through thy great mercy, a Saviour's grace, and the Holy 
Spirit's favor, may we all meet at last in joy before thy throne in heaven, and 
to thy great name shall be praise forever and ever." 

The Post Commander next spoke and said : 

"One by one, as the years roll on, we are called together to fulfil the last 
sad rites of respect to our comrades of the war. The present, full of the cares 



BORNE TO HIS REST. 



793 



and pleasures of civil life, fades away, and we look back to the time when 
shoulder to shoulder, on many battle-fields, or around the guns of our men-of- 
war, we fought for our dear old flag. We may indulge the hope that the spirit 
with which, on land and sea, hardship, privation and danger were encountered 
by our dead heroes, may never be blotted out from the history or memories of 
the generations to come — a spirit uncomplaining, obedient to the behest of 
duty, whereby to-day our national honor is secure and our loved ones rest in 
peace under the protection of the dear old flag. May the illustrious life of him 
whom we lay in the tomb to-day prove a glorious incentive to the youth who, 
in the ages to come, may be called upon to uphold the destinies of our country! 
As the years roll on we, too, shall have fought our battles through and be laid 
at rest, our souls following the long column to the realms above, as grim death 
hour by hour shall mark its victims. Let us so live that when thatlime shall 
come those we leave may say above our graves, ' Here lies the body of a true- 
hearced, brave and earnest defender of the republic' " 

Comrade Lewis W. Moore, senior vice-commander, then stepped 
forward and laid a wreath of evergreen upon the coffin, saying : 
" In behalf of the post I give this tribute, a symbol of undying love 
for comrades of the war." Junior Vice-Commander John Ai^Wei- 
dersheim laid a white rose upon the coffin, saying : " Symbol of 
purity, we offer at this sepulchre a rose. May future generations 
emulate even the lowliest of our heroes." Past Post Commander 
A. J. Sellers placed a laurel wreath upon the coffin, saying: " Last 
token of affection from comrades in arms, we crown these remains 
with a symbol of victory." 

Rev. J. W. Sayers, Chaplain-in-Chief, Department of Pennsylvania, 
G. A. R., followed with a short address, as follows : 

" The march of another comrade is over, and he lies down after it in the 
house appointed for all the living. Thus summoned, this open tomb reminds 
us of the frailty of human life and the tenure by which we hold our own. ' In 
such an hour as ye think not the Son of Man cometh.' 

" It seems well we should leave Qur comrade to rest where over him will 
bend the arching sky, as it did in great love when he pitched his tent, or lay 
down weary by the way or on the battle-field, for an hour's rest. As he was 
then so he is still — in the hands of the Heavenly Father. * God giveth his 
beloved sleep.' 

"As we lay our comrade down here to rest, let us cherish his virtues and 
try to emulate his example. Reminded forcibly by the vacant place so lately 
filled by our deceased brother, that our ranks are thinning, let each one be so 
loyal to every virtue, so true to every friendship, so faithful in our remaining 
march, that we shall be ready to fall out here to take our places at the great 
review, not in doubt, but with faith ; the merciful captain of our salvation will 
call us to that fraternity which, on earth and in heaven, may lemain unbroken. 
Jesus saith, ' Thy brother shall rise again. I am the Resurrection and the 
Life.' Behold, the silver cord having been loosed, the golden bowl broken, 
we commit the body to the grave, where dust shall return to earth as it was,' 
and the spirit to God who gave it. Earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust! 
looking to the resurrection and the life to come, through our Lord Jesus Christ." 

Rev. H. Clay Trumbull, Past Post Chaplain of Meade Post, and 
Chaplain-in-Chief, Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the 
United States, commandery of Pennsylvania, followed with a short 



794 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

prayer, after which the bugler of Jennings's Band, of Camden, N. J., 
sounded taps — Hghts out — and the beautiful and impressive service 
was brought to a close. 

Bishop Harris stepped forward and read the first portion of the 
Methodist burial service; the concluding portion of the service was 
read by Dr. Newman. There were no other words spoken. The 
undertaker and his assistants then made fast the lid of the burial 
case, and without further ceremony it was borne into the tomb and 
deposited in the steel receptacle that there awaited it. The iron gate 
of the vault was closed and locked, and the key handed by the un- 
dertaker to Gen. Hancock, who in turn gave it to Mayor Grace. 
The Mayor subsequently handed the key to President Cummins, of 
the Park Department, in whose possession it will doubtless remain. 
As the coffin entered the door of the tomb, the muskets of the 
Seventh Regiment sent forth a volley, the regulars followed with 
another, and the Randolph Light Battery, stationed north of the 
tomb, on the face of the bluff, fired three salvos. General Sherman 
turned to where Col. Grant, with Mrs. Sartoris, was standing, and 
took the former affectionately by the hand. The heads of the ladies 
of the Grant household were deeply bowed. It was with this tab- 
leau that the funeral closed. President Cleveland and Secretary 
Bayard were the first to leave the tomb, and were driven to the pier 
at Manhattanville, where they were joined by other members of the 
Cabinet, and boarding the U. S. steamer Dispatch, were taken up 
the river. 

The troops fell in within a few moments afterwards, and taking 
various cross streets were soon scattered throughout the avenues 
leading down town. The people dispersed with as little confusion. 

Finally, it may be said that the great body of men in the funeral 
procession was formed and carried to the end of the line with a 
clocklike precision that was marvellous, and could have been effected 
only by the thorough, careful and disciplined efforts of Gen. Han- 
cock and his regular army staff, aided by ex-officers of the army 
appointed as chiefs of divisions; that the police under Supt. Murray, 
his Inspectors and Captains, were admirably placed, and preserved 
perfect order without undue violence or severity, and that the vast 
throngs of spectators were quiet and reverent to a degree unparal- 
leled in the history of .such crowds in this city. 

A guard of Federal soldiers remained at the tomb. 

Under the stars that spangled all the sky the soldiers kept their 
night watch at the tomb. Under the stars the bayonets gleamed, 
the sentinel's measured footbeat sounded and the relief guard passed 
like a troop of spectres in the shadowy landscape. 

The white tents gleamed in the darkness of the trees; fitfully glit- 
tered the starlight on sword hilt and musket barrel. The great river 



BORNE TO HIS REST, 795 

Stretching underneath was dark and silent, and the sails of the few 
laggard craft dropping down with the tide dashed only a moment 
and were gone. 

So quiet and solemn was it all that fancy might well believe it a 
bivouac of the dead over the resting place of their old commander. 

For .long the stir and bustle of the day had lasted, but with the 
setting of the sun had passed away the pageantry of the troops, the 
flash of arms and the hubbub of the onlooking thousands. Under 
the greenish sky which ushered in the summer night all the stirring 
sounds had melted away, and from the summit of the hill where the 
dead was laid to rest the pomp and splendor of that august burial 
were effaced. 

And yet a throng lingered. Prompted by curiosity or perhaps by 
veneration they crowded about the vault and choked the way to it. 
So when at seven o'clock came Undertaker Merritt and his men to 
place the casket in its steel burial case they had to elbow a passage 
to the entrance. Patrick T. Cregan, the patentee of the " ghoul proof" 
receptacle as it is called, had a force of assistants with him, who 
raised the cedar box in which the casket lay and placed it in the 
metal sarcophagus. The latter, half an inch in thickness and weigh- 
ing 3,800 pounds, rests on a pedestal of marble from which it is 
separated by a sheet of plumbago. It is believed to be proof against 
atmospheric and other influences and cannot be opened by any ordi- 
nary method. 

Soon the vault resounded with the hammers of the workmen, and 
the creaking of the fancy screw driver engraved with the name of 
''General Grant" on one side and " Merritt" on the other, which is 
to be treasured as a souvenir. In the dim recess, lighted by candles, 
were Messrs. R. M. Walters, Jacob Ruppert and Beyer Sharpman, 
the sub-committee of the Committee of One Hundred. Outside 
the throng restrained by Captain Beattie and a force of Park police- 
men had dwindled away, and the melancholy radiance showed only 
a cluster on the dark path. 

Down from the mound overhead came the call, '' Number one. 
Ten o'clock and all's well." It was the sentinel passing the word. 
Still the group sat in the vault, and now it was a painter, who, with 
pot and brush, covered with a new dark coat the burial case which 
had been scratched. 

"Number two. Ten o'clock and all's well !" sounded away in the 
darkness, and was caught up and repeated by each of the six soldiers 
on guard. And now Captain Josiah A. Fessenden, in command of 
H Battery, Fifth artillery, appeared. His men, thirty-six in number, 
had been chosen to keep watch for thirty days over the General 
under whom they had fought at Shiloh in the Army of the Cum- 
berland. They had pitched their tents in a hollow near the mound 



796 LIFE O^ ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

and, provisioned for five days, had already begun their melancholy 
duty of guarding the vault in bodies of six men, with a corporal 
and sergeant. 

A cluster of them stood outside, musket in hand, and, the final 
work upon the burial case concluded, the committee and workmen 
passed into the air. Then Undertaker Merritt turned the great brass 
key in the lock and gave it into Captain Beattie's keeping. 

''Fall in," cried the latter, and with him at their head the gray- 
coats passed away, while Sergeant Barrett and Corporal Thornton 
marched up their men. All was over. The sentries mounted 
guard. The onlookers passed away and the place was left to silence 
and to darkness. 

The warrior had found rest at last. The night winds which sighed 
through the leafage of the park were soft and low. The rattle of the 
elevated railroad trains, heard only for a moment and then expiring 
in the distance, was dull and muffled. The lonely martial figures 
standing around the tomb were mute. The warrior had found rest, 
and God's starlight shone upon the hill and suffused the melancholy 
vault like an assurance of His peace. 



CHAPTER XXXIII. 

CONCLUSION. 

The Bereaved Family — Johnston and Gordon on the New Era of Peace— Parades and 
Orations — General Ben. Butler's Eulogy at Lowell, Massachusetts — Blaine's Eulogy 
— Conclusion — Former Presidents and the Circumstances under which they have 
Died. 

The curtains of the rooms on the parlor floor of the north side 
of the Fifth Avenue Hotel were raised shortly before eight o'clock. 
The Grant family, who occupy that entire suit, descended to the 
private dining hall, where they were joined at breakfast by Senor 
Romero and Senator Chaffee. After the meal the ladies retired to 
their rooms to prepare for the funeral, while Colonel Fred. Grant 
conferred with one of General Hancock's aides. At ten o'clock the 
hallway was cleared and the family left their rooms, crossed the 
east corridor and followed the south hall to the Twenty-third Street 
entrance. The steps and sidewalk were filled with the crowd. 
Men, and even women, had climbed upon the iron railing about the 
door, and stood on tiptoe in the street. When the family arrived at 
the inside door of the side entrance they were compelled to wait 
for the crowd to be parted. 

Captain Williams, with a body of police, opened a passage and 
lined the approach to the carriages with policemen. Mrs. Colonel 
Fred. Grant appeared, leaning upon the arm of her husband. They 
were followed by Mr. and Mrs. Jesse Grant and a little child ; they 
entered the first carriage, which moved ahead and took position 
immediately behind the catafalque. Mr. and Mrs. U. S. Grant, Jr., 
with Mrs. Sartoris and Senor Romero occupied the second carriage, 
which was also driven to a place behind the funeral car beside 
the first carriage. Next to the Grant family were the President and 
Cabinet, who were followed by several hundred carriages. 

The number of vehicles behind the Grant family pushed so near 
to their carriages that they were several times forced almost on to 
the funeral car. The drivers, however, instituted a system of signals, 
and when a sudden stop was made it was signalled along the line, 
and each carriage remained in its position. The lines were pre- 
served until the procession entered Riverside Park. There the car- 
riages in the rear drove by the regular line and attempted to crowd 
near the funeral car. At one time there was a seemingly inextrica- 
ble tangle, with the carriages of the Grant family in the centre. 

(797) 



7^8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

The prompt action of the pohce relieved the press, and the proces- 
sion again moved on. 

At the Park the catafalque was driven to the entrance of the tomb 
and was immediately followed by the carriages containing the Grant 
family. The ladies, heavily veiled and attired plainly in crape and 
Henrietta-cloth dresses, were escorted to the tomb. They remained 
standing near the entrance during the exercises and then at once 
returned to their carriages. 

For some reason the drivers had disappeared, and the party were 
compelled to wait for several minutes. During this time the infant- 
ry were discharging volley after volley of salutes, which drew the 
attention of the crowd from them. When the carriages finally 
arrived, the family at once left for the hotel. They were not recog- 
nized as they quietly entered the side door on Twenty-third Street. 
The crowds were scattered about the main entrance awaiting the 
arrival of the Presidential party. The Grant family at once retired 
to their rooms, and at seven o'clock dined in company with Senor 
Romero and Senator Chaffee. 

The family were much fatigued by the long journey, and were in 
constant apprehension lest something should occur to mar the 
exercises. The ladies of the party were several times much v/orried 
by the movements of the ambulances as they passed with soldiers 
who had been overcome by the heat. 

At various times since the close of the war there has been talk 
about " an era of good feeling " having set in. Men have " clasped 
hands across the bloody chasm," and as hand was clasped in hand 
there have been mutual assurances that there was no longer any 
occasion for the men of the South and the men of the North who 
had stood up against each other with drawn swords to feel that 
they came from different sections of the country, between which 
there had been the shedding of blood. 

But probably never since the war closed has there been such a 
fusion of feeling as that which has taken place within the last few 
days. The bier of Grant has served to be the tangible chasm over 
which the men of the North and the men of the South have taken 
each other by the hand and agreed that bygones were bygones. 
This feeling has already been given utterance to in the columns of the 
New York Herald, through what has been said by the men on either 
side in their casual meetings. Last night, however, this sentiment 
stood out in a more pronounced way than it ever has done before. 
The Fifth Avenue Hotel, where old time federals and confederates 
came in contact with each other, was the scene of it. Together they 
had marched behind Grant's body during the day. They had each 
uncovered as his remains were laid away in the tomb, they had all, 
during the interchange of sympathetic feeling that took place about 



CONCLUSION. 799 

the tomb, become more firmly than ever convinced that there was 
no longer any North or South, any East or any West. 

And last night they talked it over in the corridors of the hotel. 
The lower floor was filled with men who wore the federal uniform, 
or Grand Army badges upon their breasts, and with other men who 
had come from south of Mason and Dixon's line, and between them 
all there was a fraternity of feeling. General Phil. Sheridan came 
down the central stairway and was at once surrounded. General 
Sherman followed him, and the two became the centre of a throng 
composed of men who were anxious to forget that they had ever 
been enemies. But when General Joe Johnston appeared, accom- 
panied by General Buckner, there was an outburst of applause that 
had hardly died away before it was renewed by something that 
General Sheridan said, as, standing a couple of steps higher than 
the crowd, he looked over their heads. It was only half a dozen 
words that he gave utterance to, and just what they were nobody 
but those who stood near by could hear ; but they were evidently 
in sympathy with the occasion. The cheers showed that, and im- 
mediately afterward the crowd surged about the two Confederate 
generals and insisted upon shaking them by the hand. And so it 
was throughout the evenincr. 

General John B. Gordon, of Georgia, was the centre of a throng 
during the entire evening. 

" I have no doubt," said he, *' that the circumstances attending 
the death of General Grant must of necessity obliterate the list 
vestige of anything like sectionalism in this country. It cannot exist 
in the face of the present situation, and then another thing that must 
strike the Northern mind is that the universal expression of good 
feeling throughout the South must necessarily be an honest and 
sincere one, because there is no temptation to anything else. The 
government is already in the hands of the people with whom we 
sympathize, and therefore it is impossible to charge that for any 
political motive the South has taken the action it has with reference 
to General Grant. It is simply an expression of the honest senti- 
ments of the Southern people. The scene that has been witnessed 
here to-night, it seems to me, should be sufficient of itself to wipe 
out forever any lingering feeling of a shade of animosity that may 
still find a lodging place in the breast of any man of the North or 
of the South." 

In speaking of the events of the day General Johnston, in con- 
versation, said : 

'' I think it was the grandest demonstration that was ever made 
in this country. It was certainly the greatest manifestation of popu- 
lar affection that I ever witnessed. I was especially pleased at the 
opportunity of adding my tribute to the universal evidence of re- 



80O LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

spect and affection in which the memory of General Grant is 
held." 

"Have you been pleased at your own reception in the North?" 

" I have been greatly pleased with the hospitality and kindness 
which I find on all sides. I have had a great deal of intercourse 
with Northern men since the war, but this occasion seems to illus- 
trate in a marked degree the unity and good will between all 
sections of the country. I don't know whether it increases this good 
feeling, but it certainly illustrates and sympathizes it." 

" You knew General Grant well, did you not ? " 

"Yes; I knew him and respected him. He had a great many 
fine and noble qualities. He was always steadfast in support 
of his friends, and that is a royal quality." 

'' General Grant's conduct immediately after the war did more 
than anything else to heal the scars of defeat and the bitterness be- 
tween the sections. He aroused in the South a feeling of gratitude 
and respect by his generosity in victory. The terms of surrender 
that he offered to Lee were such as to make a great change in the 
feeling of the Southern people. There was an apprehension through- 
out the South after the death of Lincoln that President Johnson in- 
tended to deal harshly with the defeated leader. It may have been 
a mistaken idea, but that was the impression. It was believed that 
Johnson intended to make an example of some of the Southern 
leaders, and particularly of General Lee. But General Grant, you 
may remember, declared that General Lee was under the protection 
of the government of the United States. That protection I gave him, 
said General Grant, in substance, when I was vested with the 
authority to do so, and I mean that he shall be protected. That 
incident did much to change the whole course of feeling in the 
South. 

General Logan said the procession was a great event and was 
well managed so far as he could see. The day was propitious, but 
the weather warm. Those who were at the funeral would long re- 
member it. 

Mr. George W. Childs, proprietor of the Public Ledger, said that 
although he imagined he knew the strong hold that General Grant had 
upon the popular heart, he was amazed at the character of the day's 
demonstration. He had never witnessed anything like it and never 
expected to again see anything that would equal it. All along the 
line not only was the crowd noticeable for its vastness, covering as 
it did many miles, but the manner in which the people acted and 
the evidences of sincere affection which they betrayed were some- 
thing marvellous. There was a universality of sentiment among 
the hosts of onlookers, and he was particularly struck with the un 
questionable sincerity of the mourning of the people in their love 



MR. Blaine's eulogy 8oi 

for General Grant. Riding, as he did, with the other pall-bearers, 
very near the funeral car, he could not help observing the temper 
of the people. Another thing that struck him was the good feeling 
that was manifested towards the Southern generals. "Wherever the 
carriages stopped during the parade, in consequence of any tempo- 
rary obstruction, the people crowded around to shake hands with 
General Johnston, General Buckner and the others ; and while it 
was evident that General Sherman and General Sheridan were both 
extremely popular, yet the people were undeniably anxious to go 
out of their way to make the Southerners feel at home, and at many 
points half-suppressed applause greeted the appearance of the South- 
ern generals. 

Mr. A. J. Drexel, of Philadelphia, who was a pall-bearer in place 
of Hamilton Fish, who was ill, went back to Philadelphia early in 
the evening, being himself indisposed. He was filled with surprise 
and ^gratification at the evidences of good-will that he had ob- 
served as he rode in the funeral procession, and which were in- 
creased many fold as the men of the two armies met each other 
socially in the hotel corridor. It was an augury, he thought, of 
much good to both sections of the country. 

Blaine's eulogy. 

Appropriate Grant memorial services were held at Augusta, Me. 
At the exercises held in Granite Church the following eulogy was 
delivered by Mr. James G. Blaine : 

'' Public sensibility and personal sorrow over the death of General 
Grant are not confined to one continent A profound admiration 
for great qualities, and still more profound gratitude for great ser- 
vices, have touched the heart of the people with true sympathy, 
increased even to tender emotions by the agony of his closing days 
and the undoubted heroism with which he morally conquered a last 
cruel fate. The world in its hero-worship is discriminating and 
practical, if not, indeed, selfish. Eminent qualities and rare achieve- 
ments do not always insure lasting fame. A brilliant orator enchains 
his hearers with his inspired and inspiring gifts ; but, if his speech 
be not successfully used to some popular recollection, his only 
reward will be in the fitful applause of his forgotten audience. A 
victorious general in a war of mere ambition receives the cheers of 
the multitude and the ceremonial honors of the government ; but, 
if he brings no boon to his country, his fame will find no abiding- 
place in the centuries that follow. The hero for the ages is he vvho 
has been chief and foremost in contributing to the moral and 
material progress, to the grandeur and glory of the succeeding 
generation. Washington secured the freedom of the colonies and 
founded a new nation. Lincoln was the prophet who warned the 
51 



802 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

people of the evils that were undermining our free government and 
the statesman who was called to leadership in the work of their 
extirpation Grant was the soldier who, by victory in the field, 
gave vitality and force to the policies and philanthropic measures 
which Lincoln defined in the Cabinet for the regeneration and secu- 
rity of the Republic. 

" The monopoly of fame by the few in this world comes from 
an instinct, perhaps from a deep-seated necessity of human nature. 
Heroes cannot be multiplied. The gods of mythology lost their 
sacredness and their power by their numbers. The millions pass 
into oblivion; the units only survive. Who asked the great leader 
of Israel to conduct the chosen people over the sands of the desert 
and through the waters of the sea into the promised land? Who 
marched with Alexander from the Bosphorus to India, and who 
commanded the legions of Caesar in the conquest of Gaul ? Who 
crossed the Atlantic with Columbus? Wlio ventured through the 
winter passes of the Alps with the conqueror of Italy? Who 
fought with Wellington at Waterloo ? Alas ! how soon it may be 
asked, Who marched with Sherman from the mountain to the sea ? 
Who with Meade on the victorious field of Gettysburg? Who 
shared with Thomas in the glories of Nashville ? Who went with 
Sheridan through the trials and trmmphs of the blood-stained 
valley? General Grant's name v/ill survive through the centuries, 
because it is indissolubly connected v/ith the greatest military and 
moral triumph in the history of the United States. If the armies 
of the Union had ultimately failed, the vast and beneficent designs 
of Lincoln would have been frustrated, and he would have been 
known in history as a statesman and philanthropist, who, in the cause 
of humanity, cherished great aims which he could not realize, and 
conceived great ends which he could not attain ; as an unsuccessful 
ruler, whose policies distracted and dissevered his country ; while 
General Grant would have taken his place with that long and 
always increasing array of great men who were found wanting in 
the supreme hour of trial. But a higher power controlled the 
result. God in his gracious mercy had not raised those men for 
works which should come to naught. In the expression of Lincoln, 
*' No human counsel devised nor did mortal hand work out those 
great things.' In their accomplishment those human agents were 
sustained by more than human power, and through them great 
salvation was wrought for the land. As long, therefore, as the 
American Union shall abide, with its blessings of law and liberty, 
Grant's name shall be remembered with honor. As long as the sla- 
very of human beings shall be abhorred and the freedom of man 
assured Grant shall be recalled with gratitude, and in the cycles of 
the future the story of Lincoln's life can never be told without 



MR. Blaine's eulogy. 803 

associating Grant in the enduring splendor of his own ereat 



name. 



' General Grant's military supremacy was honestly earned with- 
out factitious praise and without extraneous help. He had no influ- 
ence to urge his promotion except such as was attracted by his own 
achievements. He had no potential friends except those whom his 
victories won to his support. He rose more rapidly than any mili- 
tary leader m history, from the command of a single regiment to 
the supreme direction of a million of men, divided into many great 
armies and operating over an area as large as the empires of Ger- 
many and Austria combined. He exhibited extraordinary qualities 
in the field. Bravery among American officers is a rule which has 
happily, had few exceptions; but, as an eminent general said Grant 
possessed a quality above bravery. He had an insensibility to dan- 
ger, apparently an unconsciousness of fear. Besides that he pos- 
sessed an evenness of judgment to be depended upon in Lunshine 
and in storm. Napoleon said, ' The rarest attribute among generals 
IS two o'clock in the morning courage. I mean,' he added, * unpre- 
pared courage; that which is necessary on an unexpected occasion 
and which, in spite of the most unforeseen events, leaves full freedom' 
of judgment and promptness of decision.' No better description 
could be given of the type of courage which distinguished General 
Grant. His constant readiness to fight was another quality, which 
according to the same authority, established his right as a com- 
mander. 'Generals,' said the exile at St. Helena, 'are rarely found 
eager to give battle. They choose their positions, consider their 
combinations, and their indecision begins. Nothing,' added this 
greatest warrior of modern times, 'nothing is so difficult as to 
decide.' General Grant, in his services in the field, never once exhib- 
ited indecision, and it was this quality that gave him his crowning 
characteristic as a military leader. He inspired his men with a sense 
of their invincibility and they were thenceforth invincible. The 
career of General Grant, when he passed from military to civil 
administration, was marked by his strong qualities. 

" His Presidency of eight years was filled with events of magni- 
tude, in which, if his judgment was sometimes questioned, his patriot- 
ism was always conceded. He entered upon his office after the angry 
disturbances caused by the singular conduct of Lincoln's successor 
and quietly enforced a policy which had been for four years the 
cause of embittered disputation. His election to the Presidency 
proved in one important aspect a landmark in the history of the 
country. For nearly fifty years preceding that event there had been 
few Presidential elections in which the fate of the Union had not in 
som.e degree been agitated, either by the threats of political mal- 
contents or in the apprehension of timid patriots. The Union was 



804 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

saved by the victory of the army commanded by General Grant. No 
menace of its destruction has ever been heard since General Grant's 
victory before the people. Death always holds a flag of truce over 
its own. Under that flag friend and foe sit peacefully together, pas- 
sions are stilled, benevolence is restored, wrongs are repaired, justice 
is done. 

" It is impossible that a career so long, so prominent, so positive 
as that of General Grant should not have provoked strife and engen- 
dered enmity. For more than twenty years, from the death of Lin- 
coln to the close of his own life. General Grant was the most con- 
spicuous man in America — one to whom leaders looked for leader- 
ship, upon whom partisans built their hopes of victory, to whom 
personal friends by tens of thousands offered their sincere devotion. 
It was according to the weakness and the strength of human nature 
that counter-movements should ensue; that General Grant's pri- 
macy should be challenged ; that his party should be resisted; that 
his devoted friends should be confronted by jealous men in his own 
ranks and by bitter enemies in the ranks of his opponents. But all 
these passions and all these resentments are buried in the grave 
which to-day receives his remains. Contention respecting his rank 
as a commander ceases, and Unionists and Confederates alike testify 
to his powers in battle and his magnanimity in peace. The contro- 
versy over his civil administration closes, as Democrat and Republi- 
can unite in pronouncing him to have been, in every act and every 
aspiration, an American patriot." 

butler's eulogy. 

At Lowell, Mass., General Benjamin F. Butler bore the promi- 
nent part in the Grant memorial services, pronouncing the eulogy 
on the dead hero. He said: 

Of the soldier who has performed with fidelity, unflinching courage 
and determination, witli every measure of success, every duty imposed 
upon him by his country in the years of her deadliest peril, in a 
war of most gigantic proportions, most sturdily fought out with 
millions of men in arms, wherein the very life of his country was 
at stake ; with a patriotism never doubted, which shone forth 
with an effulgence which illuminated his life; of the statesman who 
received from the peopJe the highest powers and honors twice 
conferred, and after being tried in such a position, the second time 
almost with unanimity, broken only by those whom, as a soldier, 
he had conquered and unanimously forgiven — what need is there 
for words of praise ? 

Is it not better for us who gather here, as if around his tomb, to 
take part in the last honors that can be paid to the mortal man, to 
pause for the brief time allotted to us and recall not only what he 



GENERAL BUTLER's EULOGY. 805 

was, but, for the benefit of those who shall come after us, to bring 
to our minds the causes which have made a great people quite uni- 
versally love him, and all admire him and revere his memory 
Looking upon his career, do we not find that Grant's life and char- 
acter are necessarily the outgrowth of our free institutions, which 
they together illustrate, adorn and glorify. 

Grant was educated as a soldier and served with distinction in 
the Mexican War. Apparently disgusted with the lazy ease of 
military life in time of peace, he resigned his commission and 
turned his attention to business pursuits, in which he was nob suc- 
cessful, probably because they were not adapted, as evidently they 
were not, either to his taste or his faculties. His political predi- 
lections had been, as were those of many others in his party, on 
the side of slavery as an institution imbedded in the constitution ; 
but his heart was right, and when the Southern States, their people, 
forgetful of their patriotism and their constitutional obligations, at- 
tempted to sever themselves from the Union and found a new em- 
pire whose corner-stone should be slavery, he offered his services 
in behalf of right and the true principles of democracy, and with 
unwavering fidelity followed the flag from victory to victory until 
the Union was saved. See how completely he was the outgrowth 
of our institutions ! Educated under a provision of the govern- 
ment that allows a son of the humblest citizen the best teachincr 
that can be devised, fostered and sustained by her bounty, he stood 
ready when the occasion demanded to do battle, as did Washington, 
for liberty and country; and when his strategy of obstinate deter- 
mination had subdued the rebellion his instincts of statesmanship 
showed him that the country — nearly one-half of which had needed 
to be conquered — ought to become united again ; and therefore the 
generous stipulations of surrender at Appomattox, which, if the 
hates engendered by the war had permitted the South to receive 
with true love of country and with the understanding of what the 
future, sooner or later, must bring — a united people — would have 
long since obliterated all former dissensions and divisions of party 
springing from the rebellion. 

From the hour of Lee's surrender the Presidency of General 
Grant was inevitable. As a soldier he had won the admiration and 
gratitude of the people, and by a single act of statesmanship he had 
convinced them that he might be as capable in public affairs as in 
the field, although uninstructed in the minutiae of government. 
The pistol of Booth and the tergiversation of Johnson made Grant 
President as soon as it could be done under constitutional forms. 
He took the reins of government into his hands under the most 
difficult of all conditions. The contest between Johnson and Con- 
gress as to the reconstruction of the government of the several 



8o6 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Southern States, wherein he attempted to accomplish that impossi- 
bility at once by executive order, but which could not be done 
without considerable lapse of time if Congress had most cordially 
concurred in the endeavor, had caused Congress to go much fur- 
ther in interfering with the unkindly passions of the South, and the 
action of the President had stimulated conflicting and dangerous 
organizations against the laws of Congress, so that only a wise and 
patient waiting was open to Grant's administration for proper re- 
construction, using the heavy hand only when great wrongs and 
outrages were perpetrated upon the unoffending citizens, so that 
Grant's first term upon this topic was, in fact, but a firm grasp 
holding either section from unduly interfering, irritating or exasper- 
ating the other. 

Grant was a second time elected by a united North, his messages 
and declarations to Congress, direct and simple in their announce- 
ment of his purposes and at the same time tender toward the 
South, where leniency was a virtue, enabling the reconstruction to 
begin on such a basis as alone it was possible to work it out. The 
union of the several portions of the country slowly progressed, it 
being for the interest of one political party to maintain the South 
in its entirety as an opposition. 

We now come to the saddest part of his life. The fact that on 
his retirement he had but a bare competence, and that by the re- 
sult of contributions from his friends in admiration of his character 
and deeds, stamps out the idea of any corruption in his methods or 
purposes. With a strong desire to establish his family after his 
death in such position that they might not be tempted to any course 
which should tarnish his great name and fame ; unused to business 
methods and enterprises; trustful to the last degree of those who 
won his confidence; surrounded by schemers and speculators, who 
brought to his attention every possible speculative business, he was 
tempted into more than one enterprise with which his friends 
could well wish he had not concerned himself in any way. He 
was no better business man after he had ceased to be soldier and 
President than he was before he began his public career. West 
Point does not make business men. It sometimes leaves one with- 
out unmaking him, but that is rare. Grant had heard fabulous 
tales of the riches which might be made in the banking business in 
the metropolis of the country. That he ever knew anything about 
it, or took any part in it, is now beyond all cavil or question. Th'- 
only two business transactions that he is said to have had with it 
were to borrow of a friend a very large sum of money when the 
banking concern with which he connected himself with was entirely 
rotten, and after it was evident that he was stripped of everything 
to pledge all that he had, the tributary gifts of kings and princes. 



THE OBSEQUIES. 807 

every relic and reminder of his great deeds, and even the sword he 
wore at Appomattox, to pay an honest debt. 

Soon after, seized with his fatal disease, he lived in pain and acute 
misery, ending only with the last sad hour— at peace with God and 
the world. 

For more than ten years I knew Grant the general and Grant 
the President, well and intimately. There was once a strong per- 
sonal difficulty brought about by lying statements to each, of the 
acts, motives and opinions of the other. He first learned of their 
untruthfulness, and at his request, conveyed through a friend, we 
met, and a few words explained all, apologized for all and healed 
all ; and that friendship, thus renewed, has ever continued. 

I have given you my own estimate of Grant's character ; I have 
given some of the facts upon which I have founded that estimate. 
I hold him to have been as substantially worthy as mortal man may 
be of the love, admiration and plaudits of this great people ; that 
there is due for him all over this land the heartfelt sorrow, the trust- 
ing love and the reverent appreciation with which the nation now 
weeps at the portals of his tomb. He will and ought to go down 
to our children and our children's clijldren, as long as memory lasts 
or records endure, as the soldier, the hero, the statesman and pa- 
triot. If he had other attributes less worthy they will be forgotten 
and pass away into the earth as v/ill his mortal remains, because 
they are of the " earth, earthy." But these great qualities of his 
nature, leading to conduct so honorable, so glorious to him and 
useful to mankind, will remain, as will his immortal spirit, for they 
are of the " heavens, heavenly." 

THE OBSEQUIES. 

Such a public funeral has never been witnessed in this country. 
Those of Lincoln and Garfield were wholly different. The tragic 
taking off of both inevitably colored the honor paid to their ashes. 
Lincoln died before the country had even entered upon the era 
of pacification — Garfield leaving hosts of enemies. The mourning 
in each case owed its universality less to the regret with which the 
dead was lamented than to the august office of Qiief IVLagistrate 
supremely insulted and the fortuitous martyrdom of one whom the 
nation had chosen to preside over it. Those who followed the bier of 
General Grant in New York, and those who in all portions of the coun- 
try were there present in spirit, were animated by different feelings. 
They felt deeply and sincerely the personal qualities as well as tlic 
public services of the dead. They felt not only that a hero was 
being laid to his rest, the last of the epoch-marked heroes of the 
Civil War, as we have said, but that this hero had been endowed 
by Providence with those personal qualities which add a human 



8o8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

interest to heroism and ennoble in a peculiar degree the fame 
which the greatest soldier may win. His charity to all, his absolute 
absence of malice, his chivalry towards a fallen enemy, his love and 
tenderness for his family, above all, his sturdy simplicity and quiet 
dignity of bearing under all circumstances — it was the thought 
of these qualities that united Buckner and Sherman, the President 
and the humblest citizen in his funeral train. 

There is, however, still another distinction which marks General 
Grant's obsequies. It is that this magnificent pageant, equal to any 
which modern times have seen, has been the result of the calmest 
deliberation. It has not been at all an effort of impulse, nor has 
pure emotion presided in its arrangements. It reflects in this way 
equal honor upon the de^d and the people who thus honor the 
dead. Had there been a dissenting voice in all the States, it would 
have made itself heard, and discord would have marred the perfect 
harmony of the tribute paid, not only by unanimous con- 
sent, but by unanimous desire. General Grant had been for 
months dying. The country had become wholly habituated to the 
idea of his death. There was, therefore, naturally no great ebullition 
of emotion to be expected when the news finally came. But in 
place of emotion we have witnessed the power of perfectly equable 
conviction, and his funeral becomes thus a witness to American 
appreciation of American great men, which confers eminent credit 
upon us as a nation. Whatever other republics have been, we, at 
least, are not ungrateful. We not only spontaneously and univer- 
sally lament ,the great Hero of our life and death struggle for 
national greatness, we not only pay a national tribute to his eminent 
personal qualities in so doing, but we do so in sobriety and with 
express intent, whereby we consecrate the nation as well as do 
honor to one of its greatest chieftains. 



CHAPTER XXXIV. 

HOW FORMER PRESIDENTS DIED. 



In view of the peculiar circumstances of General Grant's last 
illness, the following facts in relation to the deaths of former Presi- 
dents will be of general interest: 

General Washington, the first President, took cold during a five 
hours' ride over his plantation on the 12th of December^ I7qq 
during the last two hours of which he was exposed to a severe 
storm of snow, hail and rain. The cold developed itself next even- 
ing, when he was very hoarse, but he made light of it. " I never 
take anything for a cold," he said ; '' let it go as it came." At two 
o'clock next morning he awakened his wife, but would not let her 
rise to send for a physician lest the latter should take cold. When 
Washington's secretary was called at daybreak he found him breath- 
ing with difficulty. Physicians were sent for, and meanwhile he 
was bled and a gargle was prepared, but on attempting to use it he 
was convulsed and nearly suffocated. The remedies of the physi- 
cians were also without avail, and at 4.30 p.m. he sent his wife for 
his two wills, had her destroy one and entrusted the other to her 
keeping, giving her instructions as to his letters, papers and ac- 
counts. Between five and six o'clock, when assisted to sit up, he 
said to the physicians, " I feel I am going. I thank you for your 
attentions, but I pray you to take no more trouble about me ; let me 
go off quietly — I cannot last long." Further remedies were tried 
without avail in the evening. "About ten o'clock," writes his sec- 
retary, " he made several attempts to speak to me before he could 
effect it" At length he said : " I am just going ; have me decently 
buried, and do not let my body be put into the vault in less than 
three days after I am dead." I bowed assent, for I could not speak. 
He then looked at me again and said : " Do you understand me ? " 
I replied: "Yes." '' 'Tis well," said he. About ten minutes be- 
fore he expired (which was between ten and eleven o'clock) his 
breathing became easier. He lay quietly ; he withdrew his hand 
from mine and felt his own pulse. I saw his countenance change, 
and spoke to Dr. Craik, who came to the bedside. The general's 
hand fell from his wrist; I took it in mine and pressed it to my bosom. 
Dr. Craik put his hands over his eyes, and he expired without a 
struggle or a sigh. The body was buried on the i8th, a schooner 
being stationed off Alexandria to fire minute-guns while the 

(809) 



8lO LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

procession moved from the house to the vault. The troops, 
horbC and foot led the way; then came four of the clergy; 
then Washington's horse, with his saddle, holsters and pis- 
tols, led by two grooms in black ; then the body, borne by 
the Masonic order (of which he was a member) and officers, 
followed by the family and several old friends and the corporation 
of Alexandria. At the tomb the Rev. Mr. Davis read the funeral 
service and delivered a brief address, after which the body was de- 
posited in the vault with Masonic ceremonies. Washington's re- 
mains were deposited in their present receptacle at Mount Vernon 
in 1837. The vault was built in accordance with the provisions of 
his will, and is of brick, with an arched roof 

John Adams, the second President, died on July 4, 1826, the 
semi-centenary of American independence. Adams at ninety-one 
preserved a remarkable activity of mind, though his sight was im- 
paired so that he could neither read nor write. By April, 1826, it 
was evident that he was failing, though his neighbors in Quincy, 
Mass., hoped fondly that he would be able to attend the local 4th of 
July celebration. When, however, it became apparent that he could not 
attend in person, a delegate was appointed to visit him and beg a 
last word or cheerful message. On June 30th the delegate called 
on Mr. Adams and " spent some few minutes with him in conversa- 
tion, and took from him a toast to be presented on the 4th of July 
as coming from him." " I will give you," said he, " Independence 
Forever ! " " Unceasing shouts," we are told, greeted the toast of- 
fered at the Quincy banquet, but as the guests left the hall news 
came of the death of its author. He had passed away calmly and 
without suffering at the sunset of that brilliant and memorable day. 
" Thomas Jefferson still survives," were the last words he uttered, 
so far as could be gathered from his failing articulation. He was 
buried m the family vault in the cemetery, but upon the 
completion of the Unitarian Church of Quincy, in 1828, the body 
was removed from the vault into the room beneath the church, 
where John Quincy Adams was also buried in 1848. Their wives 
are buried with them. The bodies lie in leaden caskets, placed in 
cases hewn from solid blocks of stone. 

Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Declaration of Independence, 
and the third President, died only a few hours before John Adams. 
On the third of July he dozed hour after hour under the influence 
of opiates. Rousing occasionally, he fervently expressed a desire to 
live until the day he had assisted to consecrate fifty years before. 
At 1 1 o'clock at night he whispered to Mr. N. P. Trist, his grand- 
child's husband, who sat by the bed, " This is the Fourth ? " Mr. 
Trist remained silent, being unwilling to say '* Not yet ! " " This is 
the Fourth ? " again whispered Jefferson, and when the watcher nod- 



HOW FORMER PRESIDENTS DIED. SlI 

ded, "Ah !" he sighed and sunk into sleep with an expression of 
satisfaction upon his countenance. His watchers thought him dy- 
ing, but he hngered until 1 2.40 in the afternoon, occasionally indi- 
cating a desire by words or looks. " I resign my soul to God and 
my daughter to m}^ country," is a popular version of his latest ut- 
terances. On the fly-leaf of an old account-book Jefferson wrote 
this : " Choose some unfrequented vale in the park, where is no 
sound to break the stillness but a brook that, babbling, winds 
among the woods — no mark of human shape that has been there, 
unless the skeleton of some poor wretch who sought that place out 
to despair and die in. Let it be among ancient and venerable oaks ; 
intersperse some gloomy evergreens. Appropriate one-half to the 
use of my family, the other to strangers, servants, &c. Let the exit 
look upon a small and distant part of the Blue Mountains." His 
wishes have been well carried out, His remains lie in a little inclo- 
sure to the right of a road leading from Charlotteville, Va., to 
Monticello. An obelisk nine feet high marks the spot. 

James Madison, the fourth President and the last survivor of the 
signers of the United States Constitution, died June 28, 1 836. During 
his last illness, when the family and doctor were dining, his voice was 
heard feebly from the adjoining chamber: " Doctor, are you push- 
ing about the bottles ? Do your duty, doctor, or I must cashier 
you." He is buried at Montpelier, four miles from Orange Court- 
House, Va. The grave is in the centre of a large field, in a lot 
about one hundred feet square, surrounded by a brick wall. On 
the gate is a sign, " Madison, 1820." Four graves are here. Over 
one of them rises a mound twenty feet high. A granite obelisk 
bears the inscription: "Madison. Born March 16, 175 i." By its 
side is a smaller shaft of white marble, inscribed : " In memory of 
Dolly Payne, wife of James Madison, born May 28, 1768 ; died July 
8, 1849." 

James Monroe, the fifth President and the third to die on Inde- 
pendence Day, died July 4, 1 831. He passed away in New York 
City, at the residence of his son-in-law, Samuel L. Gouverneur. 
His remains were deposited with public honors in the Marble Cem- 
etery on Second Street, in New York, where they reposed until 
1858, when they were removed, under the escort of the Seventh 
Regiment, to Hollywood Cemetery, at Richmond, Va. The re- 
mains rest on a beautiful site overlooking the James River Falls 
above Richmond, in a vault of brick and granite. 

John Quincy Adams, the sixth President and the " old man elo- 
quent," was found by death where he could have wished its approach 
— in the halls of Congress. On February 21, 1848, he ascended 
the steps of the Capitol with his accustomed alacrity and took his 



8l2 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

place in the House. While petitions were being presented suddenly 
there was a cry of" Mr. Adams !" and a rush of members towards 
his seat. He was rising with a number of petitions in his hand 
when he was struck with apoplexy and sank down, catching at his 
desk and falling into the arms of the member who sprang across 
the aisle to his assistance. He was carried into the rotunda, then 
into the Speaker's room. He attempted to speak, but his voice was 
a mere murmur, low and indistinct, though Mr. Ashman, who was 
placing him on the sofa, heard him say : " This is the last of earth. 
I am content." He became insensible at once, and lingered, faintly 
breathing, till ten o'clock on the morning of the 23d, when he ex- 
pired. Mr. Adams's body was removed on the car drawn by six 
white horses that had served for Harrison's funeral, and after lying 
in state in Faneuil Hall, Boston, was buried under the Unitarian 
Church at Ouincy, Mass. 

Andrew Jackson, the seventh President, died on Sunday, June 8, 
1845, at the Hermitage, his famous home. For months he had 
suffered with disease of the lungs, dropsy and diarrhoea. Almost to 
the last he was pestered by office-seekers and hero-worshipers. 
His last writing was a statement to help his old friend and fellow- 
soldier, Robert Armstrong, to a pension. On the 30th of May he 
gave Mr. Healy, the artist, his last sitting for the portrait designed 
for Louis Philippe, of France. Nightly he blessed and kissed each 
member of his family, bidding each a farewell as if for the last time, 
and then offered an earnest prayer for them and for his country. 
His Bible was always near him.* On the Friday previous to his 
death he gave directions concerning his funeral, and dictated a letter, 
his last, to the President, bidding him act promptly and resolutely 
in the affairs of Texas and Oregon. On the morning of his death, 
a brilliant, hot day, he bade farewell to his family, friends and ser- 
vants, whom he addressed with calmness, strength and even ani- 
mation on the subject of religion, concluding: " I hope and trust 
to meet you all in Heaven, both white and black," words he re- 
peated again in the afternoon as the end was coming on. Hearing 
the servants on the piazza weeping, he spoke again : " What is the 
matter with my dear children ? Have I alarmed you ? Oh, do not 
cry ! Be good children, and we will meet in heaven." At six he 
died without a struggle or a pang. His funeral was attended by 
three thousand people on the Tuesday following. He is buried at 
the Hermitage, on the Lebanon pike, eleven miles from Nashville, 
Tenn. A massive monument of Tennessee granite marks his grave 
and that of the wife he had loved so well, 

Martin Van Buren, the eighth President, died at Kinderhook, 
Columbia County, N. Y., on July 24, 1862, of asthma that developed 
into a painful catarrhal affection of the throat and lungs. One of 



HOW FORMER PRESIDENTS DIED. glX 

Jdiance"' h"/' ""''T" "TV,^'" <=''='-gy'"^" ^ "There is but one 
reliance. He is buried in the little village cemetery at Kinderhook 
m the family lot. A granite shaft fifteen feet high^arks hi,f grave! 
ton^fft'^A "™'^^ HaRkJSOn, the ninth President, died in Washing- 

"i l^'A^^^u"^' i^^l- He rode on horseback to his inauguration 
and stood bareheaded and without an overcoat to deliver hfs inau°" 
ural, contracting pneumonia, which was aggravated by subsequent 
imprudences. His last words, heard by Dr. Washington, were 

Sir I wish you to understand the true principles of the govern- 
ment I wish them earned out. I ask nothing more." A proces- 
sion two miles in length escorted the body, which was conveyed on 
a funeral car, drawn by six white horses, to its temporar>^ resting- 
pacem the Congressional burying-ground. His present restinl 
place .s at North Bend, Ohio. The |rave is a simple mound uf- 
fenced, on a little knoll, and is shaded by beeches and other trees 
Ihere fn°. monument and no inscription anywhere to tell the 
story of the life of the departed hero of Tippecanoe. 

John Tyler the tenth President, was taken ill on Sunday Tanu- 

Va., and died at midnight of the 17th. " Let me give you some 
stimulant, 'said h,s doctor. " I will not have it," replied the dyZ 
man and closing his eyes, he passed away quietly. His body lay 
in state at the Capitol. He was a member of the Confederate Con- 
gress, and was interred at Hollywood Cemetery on the 21st by 
Bishop Johns. His grave is a little mound covered with bushes 
Near by are the graves of President Monroe; Dr. Lawrence 
Roane Warren, the philanthropist ; Jas. M, Mason, the Confederate 
envoy to England; a son of Jefferson Davis, and Lieutenant 
General A. P. Hill, of the confederate army. 

James K. Polk, the eleventh President, died at Nashville Tenn 
June 15, 1849, three months after his retirement from the Presidency' 
He had suffered from diarrhosa on the journey home, and a recurrin<^ 
attack proved fatal. On his death-bed he received the rite of baD*^ 
tism at the hands of a Methodist clergyman. He is buried at the 
o d family homestead, at Nashville, Tenn. The monument is a 
block twelve feet square by twelve in height. 

General Zachary Taylor, twelfth President, attended the Fourth 
of July ceremonial in Washington City in 1850, when the dust from 
Kosciusko s tomb was deposited in the Washington monument and 
endured for several hours the heat of a day which he declared' was 
worse than any he had experienced in Mexico or Florida Going 
home, he insisted on eating freely of unripe cherries and drinking 
cold water and iced milk, despite the remonstrances of his servan? 
This brought on an attack of cholera-morbus, followed by typhoid 



8i4 



LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



of which he died on the 9th. An imposing procession accompa- 
nied his remains to the Congressional Cemetery, the Episcopal ser- 
vice havino- previously been read in the East room of the President's 
mansion by Dr. Butler and Dr. Pyne. His remains have been 
moved three times, and now repose in a public spot at Frankfort, 
Ky After the burial in the Congressional Cemetery at Washing- 
ton the body was removed to a lot on the Taylor Homestead, five 
miles back of Louisville, and then taken to Cave Hill Cemetery, 
Louisville. In 1878 the remains were placed in the beautiful Cem- 
etery at Frankfort, where they are in the company of many illus- 
trious dead, including Vice-President Richard Mentor Johnson. 

Millard Fillmore, the thirteenth President, died at Buffalo, N. Y., 
on March 8, 1874, and after lying in state in St. Paul's Cathedral, 
the remains were buried on the 12th at Forest Lawn Cemetery, 
three miles from Buffalo. A tall monument bears the inscription: 
" Millard Fillmore. Born January 7, 1800; died March 8, 1874." 

Franklin Pierce, the fourteenth President, died on Friday, Octo- 
ber 8, 1869, at the residence of Mr. Willard Williams, Concord, N. 
H., of dropsy and inflammation of the stomach. For the last three 
days of his life he was nearly unconscious, and died without pain. 
His body lay in state at Doric Hall, and was buried in the Minot 
Cemetery, on Main Street, on the nth. The Pierce lot is at the 
northwestern corner of the old cemetery, and contains about an acre 
of ground. The monument is of Italian marble, surmounted by a 
draped cross, and its total height is fourteen feet eight inches. 

James Buchanan, the fifteenth President, died at Wheatland, near 
Lancaster, Pa., on June i, 1868, after an illness of one month, 
though he had been failing for nearly a year. His last hours were 
peaceful and nearly painless. On the night before his death he gave 
detailed directions for his funeral and the erection of his monument, 
dictating the inscription, a blank to be left for the date of death, 
" which'cannot be distant," he said. In the morning he asked for 
a drink of water from the spring, saying to the medical attendant, 
" Doctor, if disembodied spirits ever come back, I believe that mine 
will be found about that spring." His last authentic words, as he 
sank into the sleep in which he died, were : "Oh, Lord God Al- 
mighty, as Thou wilt." His funeral took place on the 4th, the ex- 
ercises being conducted by Dr. Nevin, President of Franklin and 
Marshall College, an immense concourse being present. He is 
buried at. Woodward Hill Cemetery, Lancaster, on the banks of the 
Conestoga. The lot is enclosed by a neat iron fence. All around 
the fence is a hedge of blooming roses, and rose-bushes are planted 
in the inclosure. A fine marble sarcophagus marks the grave. 
Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth President, died by the hand of 



HOW FORMER PRESIDENTS DIED. 3ir 

John Wilkes Booth, in Washington, April 15, 186? Nine of the 
persons supposed to be implicated suffered cond.gn punishment 
The funeral honors paid to the deceased Chief Ma|istrate were of 
the most elaborate character. His remains are buried at Oak RTd<.e 
Cemetery, m bprmgfield, 111. A fine pile of marble, granite and 
bronze marks the spot. It bears the single word, " Linwln" 

rr^.n°'!f'V^°"'"''°'''c''"' seventeenth President, died suddenly at 
Greenvlle, Tenn.. on Saturday, July 3,, ,875, and was buried fvith 
Masomc ceremonies on the 3d of August. ' H,s grave ,s at Grle 

ml M ' °V 'K '^^'"'"^ ^y '^'"^^^'f- The"^ monument is of 

marble upon a base of granite, nine and one-half feet by seven feet 
The tomb was erected by the President's three surviving sons 
tlJ^Rlf-^- ^^''"'H'O' "1*^ twentieth President, was assassinated in 

?uL 2 ;8T,Y"n^'°T-^"'^°^' '^^P"' '" Washington CitJ o" 
,^ f piK '^ ^"'f'"^" Guiteau, and died of his wou.rd September 
19, at Elberon, near Long Branch, N. J. During his illness a pZlar 
movement was inaugurated to raise a fund of''s250,ooo, to be t 
vested for Mrs. Garfield and her children. The sum was par ^v 
raised while the President lived, and after his death additToi 11^001?^ 
tributions swelled the amount to over ^365.000. On the 2. st of 
September the President's remains were conveyed from the Frlnck 
yn cottage where he died, to Washington. Every city in the 
Union was draped in mourning. The body was laid in state in the 

2,Chhe"'''™''\'°°'^P'"=^"''=^'^ °" ^'""^y- September 
23 and the remains were then transferred to Cleveland, Ohio where 
hey were entombed September 26. A handsome m;usoleum for 
ttieir reception is now in course of erection at Cleveland. 



CHAPTER XXXV. 

MEMORIES OF GRANT. 

Mr. George W. Childs' personal reminiscences of his famous friend — Twenty-five years' in- 
timacy — What happened in Mr. Childs' office the day after the Presidential election of 
1876 — How the Electoral Commission was brought about — General Grant and Sena- 
tor Conkling — The Ex-President's opinions of famous soldiers — Personal traits etc. 

General Grant I first met after the victory of Vicksburg, in 
1863. The General and Mrs. Grant came to Philadelphia to make 
arrangements to put their children at school in Burlington, N. J. 
From that time our intimacy grew until his death. There were 
three characteristics that were prominent in his life, justice, kind- 
ness, and firmness. He was the most modest of men. Seeing him, 
as I did, for nearly twenty years, or such portions of the year as he 
was in the country, I had ample opportunity to notice these quali- 
ties. We lived on adjoining properties on the same land without 
any division, and I might say there never was a day when we were 
at Long Branch together but what I was in his house or he in 
mine. I never saw him in the war and never saw him in the field. 
I corresponded with him during that time, and every opportunity 
he would get he would come on to Philadelphia for the purpose of 
seeing his family, and in that way he made a great many friends. 
That was as eaily as 1863. George H. Stuart was a great friend of 
his. He always seemed to enjoy his visits there, as they gave him 
rest during the time he was in the army, and also when he was 
president. 

Much has been published about General Grant, but there are 
some things I have not seen stated, and one is that he had con- 
siderable artistic taste and talent. He painted very well. One of 
his paintings twelve by eighteen inches, perhaps, he gave to his 
frieni the Hon. A. E. Borie, of Philadelphia, who was Secretary of 
the Nivy. That picture is, I believe, the only one that he painted 
which is known to be in existence. Of the others there is no trace. 
He stood very high with his professor of drawing at West Point, 
and if he had persevered in that line might have made a good artist. 
He was always apt in mathematics and drawing. The picture I 
referred to was of an Indian chief at a trading post in the North- 
west, exchanging skins and furs with a lot of traders and trappers. 
The Indian stood in the foreground, and was the central object. 
52 (817) 



8l8 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

He was a noble figure, and was well painted in full and correct 
costume. I have seen the painting often, which has been very 
much admired, and he took a good deal of pride in it himself He 
gave it to Mr. Borie, as that gentleman was, perhaps, one of his 
dearest friends, and the intimacy kept up until the latter's death. 

HIS VIEWS OF Sherman's book. 

General Grant was not an ardent student. Early in life he was 
somewhat of a novel reader, but more latterly he read biography 
and travels. He was a careful reader and remembered everything 
he read, but he had nothing which could be distinctly called liter- 
ary taste. He was a great reader of newspapers. I remember once 
his coming down here when Sherman's work had just been pub- 
lished and I asked him if he had read the work. He said '*no," he 
had not had time to read it, and one of the persons present observed, 
"Why, General, you won't find much in it about yourself He 
doesn't seem to think that you were in the war." The General said, 
"I don't know; I have read some adverse criticisms, but I am going 
to read it and judge for myself" After he had read the book over 
carefully and attentively, I asked him what he thought of it. 
"Well," he said, "it has done me more than justice; it has given 
me more credit than I deserved. Any criticism I might make 
would be, that I think he has not done justice to Logan, Blair, and 
other volunteer generals whom he calls political generals. These 
men did their duty faithfully, and I never believe in imputing 
motives to people." I told him that General Sherman had sub- 
mitted the proof sheets of that part of the book to me, and it struck 
me in the same way. General Sherman had sent the proof sheets 
of that to me before the full book was published, and asked if I 
had any suggestions and if I thought it was just to the General. 
It will be seen by this that General Grant was always magnanimous 
to every one he came in contact with, particularly his army associ- 
ates. He was a man who rarely ever used the pronoun I in 
conversation when speaking of his battles. 

There is one amusing little incident I recall, apropos of a large, 
full-sized portrait of General Sherman on his " March to the Sea,'* 
which hangs in my hall, and which was painted from life by Kauf- 
mann. Sherman sits in front of the tent in a white shirt, without 
coat or vest. The picture shows a camp-fire in front, and the 
moonlight in the rear of the tents. The criticism of General Grant 
when he first saw it was: "That is all very fine. It looks like 
Sherman, but he never wore a boiled shirt there, I am sure." 

While living in Long Branch there was hardly a Confederate 
officer that came to the place without visiting the General He was 
always glad to see them, and with those men he invariably talked 



MEMORIES OF GRANT. 819 

over the war. The General had a very high opinion of Johnston, 
and always spoke of him as being one of the very best of Southern 
generals ; and, at a dinner, I had the pleasure of getting Johnston, 
Grant and Sherman together. 

POLITICAL FORESIGHT. 

In regard to election matters. General Grant was a close observer, 
and had a wonderful judgment in regard to results. One particular 
case may be cited. During the canvass of his second term (toward 
the latter part) there began to be doubts throughout the country 
about the election. Vice-president Wilson, who was then running 
on the ticket, who was a man of the people, and had a good deal 
of experience in election matters for forty years, made an exten- 
sive tour through the country, and he came to my house just after 
the tour, very blue. He went over the ground and showed that the 
matter was in a good deal of doubt. I went to see General Grant, 
and I told him about this feeling, particularly as coming from Sena- 
tor Wilson. The General said nothing, but he sent for a map of 
the United States. He laid the map down on the table, went over 
it with a pencil, and said : " We will carry this State, that State 
and that State," until he nearly covered the whole United States. 
It occurred to me he might as well put them all in, and I ventured 
the remonstrance, — " I think it would not be policy to talk that 
way; the election now is pretty near approaching." When the 
election came, the result of it was that he carried every State that 
he had predicted, and that prediction was in the face of the feeling 
throughout the country that the Republican cause was growing 
weaker, and in spite of the fact that the Vice-president, who was 
deeply interested in the election, had visited various parts of the 
country. South and West, and had come back blue and dispirited. 

He was staying with me during the canvass of the election be- 
tween Tilden and Hayes, and on the morning of the momentous 
day he accompanied me to my office. In a few moments an emi- 
nent Republican senator and one or two other leading Republicans 
walked in, and they went over the returns. These leaders said, 
" Hayes is elected," an opinion in which the others coincided. Gen- 
eral Grant listened to them, but said nothing. After they had set- 
tled the matter in their own minds he said : " Gentlemen, it looks 
to me as if Mr. Tilden was elected." He afterwards sent for me in 
Washington and said, ** This matter is very complicated, and the 
people will not be satisfied unless something is done in regard to it 
which will look like justice. Now " he continued, ** I have spoken 
of an electoral commission, and the leaders of the party are opposed 
to it, which I am sorry to see. They say that if an electoral com- 
mission is appointed you might as well count in Mr. Tilden. I 



820 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

would sooner have Tilden than that the RepubHcans should have a 
president who could be stigmatized as a fraud. If I were Mr. 
Hayes I would not have it unless it was settled in some way outside 
of the Senate. This matter is opposed by the leading Republicans 
in the House and Senate and throughout the country." 

THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION. 

President Grant invited the leading senators to dine with him 
that day to get their sentiment. He said to me, " You see the feel- 
ing here. I find them almost universally opposed to anything like 
an electoral commission." I named a leading Democrat in the 
House, who was, perhaps, one of the most prominent men in the 
country, a man of great influence and of great integrity of charac- 
ter, whom it would be well for General Grant to see in the matter, 
and the suggestion was acted on. I sent for this gentleman and put 
the dilemma to him in President Grant's name as follows: It is very 
hard for the President and very embarrassing as to men on his own 
side that this matter does not seem to find favor with them as well 
as to have Democratic opposition. Republicans think you might 
as well count Tilden in, but as the feeling tnroughout the country 
demands as honest a count of the thing as possible, this Electoral 
Commission ought to be appointed. 

The answer at once was that the Democrats would favor it, and 
it was through that gentleman and General Grant that the matter 
was carried through. Grant was the originator of the plan. He 
sent for Mr. Conkling and said, with deep earnestness : '* This mat- 
ter is a serious one and the people feel it very deeply. I think this 
Electoral Commission ought to be appointed." Conkling answered : 
" Mr. President, Senator Morton (who was then the acknowl- 
edged leader of the Senate) is opposed to it and opposed to your 
efforts ; but if you wish the Commission carried I can do it." He 
said : " I wish it done." Mr. Conkling took hold of the matter 
and put it through. The leading Democrat I have spoken of took 
the initiative in the House and Mr. Conkling in the Senate. Gen- 
eral Patterson, of Philadelphia, who was an mtimate friend of Gen- 
eral Jackson and a life-long Democrat, was also sent for. He had 
large estates in the South and a great deal of influence with the 
Democrats. General Patterson then was upwards of 80, but he 
came down there and remained one or two weeks, working hard to 
accomplish the purpose in view. After the bill had passed and was 
waiting for signature General Grant went to the State fair in Mary- 
land the day it should have been signed, and there was much per- 
turbation about it. 

General Grant acted in good faith througout the whole business. 
It has been said that the changing of the complexion of the court 



MEMORIES OF GRANT. 821 

threw the matter into Hayes' hands, and, if the court had remained 
as it was, Tilden would have been declared president. General 
Grant was the soul of honor in this matter, and no one ever accused 
him or ever hinted that he was untruthful in any way. I, for one, 
don't believe that he could possibly tell a lie or act deceitfully. 
There is another point of politics not generally known. During 
Garfield's canvass, Garfield became very much demoralized. He 
said that he not only did think that they would not carry Indiana, 
but he was doubtful if they would carry Ohio. During that emer- 
gency strong appeals were made to General Grant and he at once 
threw himself into the breach. He saw his strong personal friends 
and told them they must help. There was one very strong man, a 
senator, whom General Grant sent for and told him that he must 
turn in, and, though he first declined, at General Grant's urgent 
solicitation he entered the field and contributed handsomely to the 
victory. General Grant went into the canvass with might and 
main. The tide was turned and it was through General Grant's 
personal efforts, seconded by his strong personal friends, who did not 
feel any particular interest in Garfield's election, that he was elected 

CONCERNING THE THIRD TERM. 

As to General Grant's third term, he never by word or by any let- 
ter ever suggested to any one that he would like to be nominated for 
a third term. Neither Mr Conkling, General Logan nor Senator 
Cameron had any assurance from him in any way that he would even 
take the nomination if it was tendered him, and they proceeded in that 
fight without any authority from him whatever. His heart was not on 
a third term at all. He had had enough of it After his second term 
he told me, '' I feel like a boy out of school." The three men men- 
tioned above were the leaders in that matter. Neither of them had 
ever had a hint from him in any way or shape indicating that he 
would have liked to have had a third nomination. These men are 
living and they can answer for themselves. At first Grant intended 
to decline. In his conversation with me he said : '* It is very difficult to 
decline a thing that has never been offered ;" and when he left the 
country for the West Indies I said : ** General, you leave this in the 
hands of your friends." He knew I was opposed to a third term ; and 
his political friends were in favor of it, not merely as friends, but 
because they thought he was the only man who could be elected. 
There is not a line of his in existence where he has ever expressed 
any desire to have that nomination. Towards the last, when the can- 
vass became very hot, I suppose his natural feeling was that he would 
like to win. That was natural. But he never laid any plans. He 
had never encouraged or abetted anything towards a third term 
movement. 



82 2 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

He was very magnanimous to those who differed from Lim, and 
when I asked him what distressed him most in his pohtical hfe he 
said : " To be deceived by those I trusted." He had a good many 
distresses. 

Apropos of his power of thinking and of expressing his thoughts, 
he wrote with great faciHty and clearness. His centennial address at 
the opening of the Exhibition in 1876 was hastily prepared at my 
house, and there were only one or two corrections in the whole mat- 
ter. When he went to England he wrote me a letter of fourteen pages, 
giving me an account of his reception in England. The same post 
that brought that letter contained a letter from Mr. John Walter, pro- 
prietor of the London Times, saying that he had seen our mutual 
friend, Gen. Grant, on several occasions, and wondering how he 
was pleased with his reception in England. The letter which I had 
received was so apropos that I telegraphed it over that very day to 
the London Times ; fourteen pages of manuscript without one word 
being altered, and the London Times next morning published this 
letter with an editorial. It happened that the cablegram arrived in 
London the very night the General was going through the London 
Times office to see the establishment. He said he thought the English 
people admirable ; the letter was written to a friend, not supposing 
that it would ever be put in print, and not one word had to be altered. 
I cite this to show General Grant's facility in writing. 

FINANCIAL WISDOM. 

In illustration of his perception of financial matters I remember an 
instance. On one of the great financial questions before Congress he 
was consulting with Mr. A. J. Drexel, of Philadelphia, whom he re- 
garded as one of his strongest personal friends, and the General ex- 
pressed certain views, saying that he had contemplated writing a mes- 
sage. Mr. Drexel combated his views, and the General reconsidered 
the matter and wrote a veto, showing that he was open to conviction. 
There was a matter he had considered, he thought, fully, and when 
this new light was given to him by Mr. Drexel he at once changed 
and wrote a veto instead of favoring it. A great many people had an 
idea that General Grant was very much set in his opinions ; but while 
he had his opinions, at the same time he was always open to convic- 
tion. Very seldom in talking with him he wouldn't often make an 
observation, and when you had got through it would be difficult to 
tell exactly whether he had grasped the subject or not, but in a very 
short time, if you alluded to that matter again, you would find that he 
had grasped it thoroughly. His power of observation and assimila- 
tion was remarkable. There was no nonsense about him. He was 
always neat in his dress, but not fastidious. He said he got cured of 
his pride in regiments when he came home from West Point. 



MEMORIES OF GRANT. 823 

Speaking on one or two occasions of the burial of soldiers, he ob- 
served that his old chief, General Scott, was buried at West Point 
and that he would like to be buried there also. This was several 
years ago and mentioned merely in casual conversation. That was a 
number of years ago, and I think once or twice afterwards ; it might 
have been alluded to incidentally since. 

There was a paragraph in the newspapers recently referring to 
the speech of Hon. Chauncey Depew, that Grant had saved the 
country twice. I don't know what could have been meant by that 
paragraph. In the Electoral Commission he saved a great deal of 
trouble, but whether he saved the country or not is another ques- 
tion. I don't know whether or not that could be the implication. 
What I have said about the Electoral Commission, I have said of 
my own knowledge. 

HIS LAST PUBLIC SPEECH. 

General Grant, surrounded by those he knew well, always did 
two-thirds of the talking. He was a reticent and diffident man in 
general company, and it was not until he was out of the presidency 
that he became a public speaker. He told a story that he was 
notified once that he was expected to make a speech in reply to 
one which was given him, and he looked it over and wrote his 
answer carefully; but when he got up he was stricken dumb. He 
utterly lost himself and could not say a word. After that he did 
not want to hear what was going to be said, and never prepared 
anything. A gentleman told me that in going to Liverpool and 
Manchester, a committee came down to meet him and brought an 
address of what they were going to say, to show it to him. He 
said, "No, I have had one experience. I don't want to see it." 
The last speech he ever made, the last time he ever addressed the 
public, was last Summer, a year ago this month, at Ocean Grove. 
Governor Ogilvie was staying with him at his cottage, and George 
H. Stuart came up to ask him if he would not come down to 
Ocean Grove, being the first time he appeared in public since his 
misfortune. He was then lame, and was compelled to use his 
crutches. He found 10,000 people assembled. They cheered him 
and he arose to make a kw remarks. After saying a few words he 
utterly broke down, and the tears trickled down his cheeks. That 
was the last time he ever appeared in public. 

A year ago this month attention was first directed to his disease. 
He told me he had a dryness in his throat, and it seemed to trouble 
him. I said Dr. Da Costa, one of the most eminent physicians of 
the country, was coming down to spend a (qw days with me. He 
was an old friend, and would be glad to look into the matter. 
Dr. Da Costa, on arriving, went over to the General's house, ex- 



g24 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

amined him carefully, gave a prescription, and askea the General 
who his family physician was. General Grant said Fordyce Barker, 
and he was advised to see him at once. I could see that the 
General was suffering a good deal, though uncomplaining, and 
during the Summer several times he asked me if I had seen 
Da Costa, and seemed to want to know exactly what was the matter 
with him.' General Grant, after he got worse, said to me, " I want 
to come over and see you, and have a talk with Da Costa." He 
was not afraid of the disease after he knew all about it, and the last 
time I saw him, just before he went to Mt. McGregor, he said, 
"Now, Mr. Childs, I have been twice within a half a minute of 
death.' I realize it fully, and my life was only preserved by the 
skill and attention of my physicians. I have told them the next 
tim*e to let me go." 

A GREAT WILL-POWER. 

The General had great will-power, and the determination to finish 
his book kept him up. He quickly made up his mind that it was 
a fatal disease, but he was resolute to live till his work was done. 
He said, — " If I had been an ordinary man, I would have been 
dead long ago," and he seemed to appreciate very warmly the kind- 
ness and attention of his physicians. 

In good health, General Grant would smoke a dozen very large, 
strong segars a day ; but he could stop smoking at any time. He 
told me that toward the latter part of last summer, he got smoking 
fewer and milder segars, perhaps two or three a day. In February 
of this last year he expected to pay me a visit. He wrote, saying, 
— ''The doctor will not allow m? to leave until the weather gets, 
warmer. I am now quite well in every way, except a swelling of 
the tongue above the root, and the same thing in the tonsils just 
over it. It is very difficult for me to swallow enough to maintain 
my strength, and nothing gives me so much pain as to swallow 
water." I asked him about that, and he said, — " If you could imag- 
ine what molten lead would be going down your throat, that is 
what I feel when I am swallowing." In that letter he further said, 
— " I have not smoked a segar since about the 20th of November ; 
for a day or two I felt as though I would like to smoke, but after 
that I never thought of it." 

MEMORY OF PERSONS. 

I remember a year ago this month, a number of the scientists 
wrote that they would meet in Montreal from all parts of the world. 
Sir Wtlliam Thompson and others asked whether I would present 
them to General Grant. Some of them had met him. Of course, 
I was very glad to present them. I said to him in the mor-ning: 



MEMORIES OF GRANT. 825 

"General, the scientists from Canada are coming down here, and 
they are very anxious to pay their respects to you." "Oh," he 
replied, *' I have met some of those people abroad ; I will be very 
glad to see them." They came to my house, and we walked across 
the lawn to the General's. He sat on the piazza, and could not 
stand alone, but was on his crutches and was presented to every 
one of them, shaking hands with them. He would say to one gen- 
tleman, " How are you. Professor? I met you in Liverpool;" and 
to another, "Why, how are you? I met you in London," and " I am 
glad to see you, I met you in Manchester." So he recognized each 
of these visitors as soon as he laid eyes on them, and they told me 
afterward, " Why I only met him casually once with a party of peo- 
ple." This power of recognition was remarkable. I asked him 
afterwards whether he had lost the power. He answered : " No. I 
have not lost the power. If I fix my mind on a person I never for- 
get him, but I see so many that I don't always do it." 

I can illustrate an instance of his memory of persons. During 
one of the times he was staying in Philadelphia we were walking 
down Chestnut Street together, and in front of a large jeweller's 
establishment a lady came out of a store and was entering her car- 
riage. General Grant walked up to her, shook hands with her and 
put her in the carriage. " General, did you know that lady ? " 
" Oh yes," he replied; 'T know her." "Where did you see her? ' 
"I saw her a good many years ago out in Ohio and at boarding- 
school. She was one of the girls there." " Did you never see her 
before or since? " He said " No." The lady was the daughter of 
a very prominent Ohio man. Judge Jewett, and the next time she 
saw me she said : " I suppose you told General Grant who I was." 
I said I did not. " Why that is very remarkable," she answered in 
a surprised tone ; " I was only one of two or three hundred girls, 
and I only saw him at school. I have never seen him since." 

CONFIDENXE AND FRIENDSHIP. 

I need hardly say he sometimes placed his confidence in those 
who did not appreciate it. The man who was. perhaps, nearer to 
him than any one in his Cabinet was Hamilton Fish. He had the 
greatest regard for the latter's judgment. It was more than friend- 
ship, it was genuine affection between them, and General Grant 
always appreciated Mr. Fish's staying in his Cabinet. Mr. Fish, if 
he had been governed by his own feelings, would have left the 
Cabinet, but he remained purely as a matter of kindness and friend- 
ship to Grant, which Grant always appreciated. 

Apropos of the Indian matter he told me that as a young lieuten- 
ant he had been thrown among the Indians, and had seen the un- 
just treatment they had received at the hands of the white men. 



S26 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

He then made up his mind if he ever had any influence or power it 
should be exercised to try to amehorate their condition, and the 
Indian Commission was his idea. He wished to appoint the very 
best men in the United States. He selected William E. Dodge, 
P^lix Bruno, of Pittsburg, Colonel Robert Conklin, of St. Louis, 
and George H. Stuart, of Philadelphia.- They were a portion of the 
Indian Commission which he always endeavored to establish, and 
they always could count upon him in aiding them in every possible 
way. He took that great interest always and never lost that inter- 
est. Even to his last moments he watched the progress of the 
matter, but it was a very difficult matter to handle at any time, and 
then especially as there was a great Indian ring to break up. 

He was of a very kindly nature, generous to a fault. I would 
often remonstrate with him and say: ''General, you can't afford to 
do this," and I would try to keep people away from him. In the 
case of one subscription, when they wanted him to contribute to a 
certain matter which I did not think he was able to do, I wouldn't 
let them go near him. Some injudicious person went there and he 
subscribed a thousand dollars. 

General Grant always felt that he was badiy treated by Halleck, 
but he rarely ever spoke unkindly of any one. In fact, I could 
hardly say he spoke unkindly, but he did feel that he was not fairly 
treated by Halleck. During one of my last visits to him he showed 
me his army orders, which he had kept in books. He had a copy 
of everything he ever did or said in regard to army matters. He 
was very careful about that, as he had written all the orders with 
his own hand. He pointed to one of this large series of books and 
said that it was fortunate that he had kept these things, because 
several of the orders could not be found on any record at the War 
Department. But during my long friendship I never heard him 
more than two or three times speak unkindly of Halleck, although 
he was very unjustly treated by him — a fact which I think will be 
borne out by the records. I told him of something that occurred 
to me in connection with one of the parties in charge of the 
records at Washington. He had been a strong friend of Halleck, 
and prejudiced against General Grant in the office where all these 
things passed through his hands. But, after twenty years of ex- 
amination, he said that there was not a line relating to Grant that 
did not elevate him in the minds of thinking people. 

LIFE AT LONG BRANCH. 

It was through me that General Grant first came to Long Branch. 
He always enjoyed being here. He was totally unspoiled by all the 
honors conferred upon him. He was, simple, unaffected, and at- 
tached all the people to him. He drove out twice a day, and knew 



MEMORIES OF GRANT. 827 

every by-way within twenty miles. It was his habit to drive out every 
morning after breakfast for a long distance, and then he would come 
home and read the papers or any books he might have in hand. 
He was very careful in answering his correspondence. Most of his 
letters were begging letters of some kind or other, and I remember 
an incident showing his justness and tenderness of heart. Once 
he had two cases of petition. He said, " I did a thing to-day that 
gave me great pleasure. There was a poor Irish woman wjio had a 
boy in the army that came down from New York and had spent all 
her money. She had lost several boys, and this one she wished to 
get out of the service to help support her. I gave her an order 
and was very glad to do it." In contrast to that, there was a lady of 
a very distinguished family of New York, who came here and 
wanted me to remove her son from Texas. He was an officer in 
the army, and I told her I could not do that. My rich petitioner 
then said, 'Well, could you not remove his regiment?' at which, 
you can guess, I could hardly help laughing in her face." Grant 
didn't hesitate a moment to refuse a rich woman's unreasonable 
request, but it gave him pleasure to grant the petition of a poor 
Irish woman. 

He was very kind to the poor, and, in fact, to everybody, espe- 
cially to widows and children of , army officers. He gave the names 
of quite a number of army officers' sons for appointment in the 
navy or army. He said, "I am glad to have those. I like to 
appoint army and navy men's children, because they have no po- 
litical influence." One-tenth of his appointments were the children 
of deceased officers, young men without influence, to get into West 
Point. There never was an army man, Confederate or Union, who 
was not a friend of General Grant. He never excited the jealousy 
or enmity of these people, he was so just. When he was mistaken 
there was no man more ready to acknowledge a mistake. He 
showed a great tenacity in sticking to friends longer than he ought 
to have done. When I spoke to him about this he would answer, 
" Well, if I believed all I hear, I would believe everybody was bad." 
He had some good men around him as well as bad, Hamilton Fish, 
for instance. General Grant would say there was nobody who came 
in contact with him but that he was traduced, and secondly he very 
often had to depend upon his own judgment in the matter. One of 
his expressions was, ** Never desert a friend under fire." 

AT PEACE WITH THE WORLD. 

General Grant rarely alluded to those who had abused his con- 
fidence, even to his most intimate friends. No matter how much 
a man had injured him, he was wont to say that he felt to the end 



828 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

what he might have felt in the outset. If any man ever died at 
peace with all the world, why he did. 

Grant had the greatest admiration for Joseph Johnston, and 
Johnston for him ; and when it was proposed to bring up the re- 
tiring bill, Johnston was to take the initiative in the matter. The 
passage of that bill gave great gratification to the General. I hap- 
pened to be with him on the 3d of March, and was talking with 
him, and said : " General, that bill of yours will pass to-day." 
" Well, Childs," he said, " you know that during the last day of a 
session everything is in a turmoil. Such a thing cannot be possi- 
bly be passed." "Well," I said, "Mr. Randall assured me that 
that thing would be passed." He answered : " If anybody in the 
world could pass that bill I think Mr. Randall could. But I don't 
think it is at all likely, and I have given up all expectation." While 
I was talking (that was about ii 30 A. M.) I got a telegram from 
Mr. A. J. Drexel, saying the bill had passed, and the General seemed 
exceedingly gratified. I remarked, " General, the part that some of 
the men took in that matter was not justified." " Oh, perhaps they 
thought they were right. I have no feeling at all ; I am only grate- 
ful that the thing has been passed," he answered. Mrs. Grant came in 
and I said, "Mrs. Grant we have got good news the bill is passed." 
She cried out, "Hurrah ! our old commander is back," In answer 
to a remark that it would be very good if it could be dated from the 
time of going out, he said, "Oh, no; the law is to date from the 
time one accepts. In the early part of the war I saw in the newspa- 
pers that I was appointed to a higher rank, and I wrote on at once 
and accepted on the strength of the newspaper report. In about 
two months' time, through red tape, I got my appointment, but I 
got my pay from the time I wrote accepting the newspaper an- 
nouncement, and I saved a month's pay by that." 

As to Fitz-John Porter, I spoke to him during the early stages 
of it at a time when his mind had been prejudiced by some around 
him, and he was very busy. Afterwards, when he looked into the 
matter, he said he was only sorry that he had so long delayed going 
at the examination as he ought to have done. He felt that if ever a 
man had been treated badly Porter was. He had examined the 
case most carefully, gone over every detail, and he was perfectly 
well satisfied that Porter was right. He wanted to do everything in 
his power to have him righted, and his only regret was that he should 
have neglected so long and have allowed him to rest under injustice. 

THE PORTER CASE. 

There are few men that would take a back track as General Grant 
did so publicly, so determinedly and so consistently right through. 
I had several talks with him, and he was continually reiterating his 



MEMORIES OF GRANT. 829 

regrets that he had not done justice to Porter when he had the 
opportunity. He never ceased to the day of his death from his 
right to speak and write in favor of Porter. Me ran counter to a 
great many of his poHtical friends in this matter, but his mind was 
absolutely clear. Not one man in a thousand would go back on 
his record in such a matter, especially when he was not in accord 
with the Grand Army or his strong political friends. Grant went 
into the matter most carefully, and his publications show how 
thoroughly he examined the subject, but he never wavered after 
his mind was fixed. Then he set to work to repair the injury done 
to Porter. If Grant had had time to examine it while he was presi- 
dent he would have carried it through. That was his great regret. 
He felt that while he had power he could have passed it and ought 
to have done it. When Grant took pains and time to look into 
the mitter no amount of personal feeling or friendship for others 
would keep him from doing the right thing. He could not be 
swerved from the right. 

Another great trait of his character was his purity in every way. 
I never heard him express or make an indelicate allusion in any way 
or shape. There is nothing I ever heard that man say that could 
not be repeated in the presence of women. If a man was brought 
up for an appointment, and it 'Vas shown that he was an immoral 
man, he would not appoint him, no matter how great the pressure 
brought to hear upon him. 

General Grant would sit in my library with four or five others talk- 
ing freely and doing perhaps two-thirds of the talking. Let a 
stranger enter whom he did not know, and he would say nothing 
more during that evening. That was one peculiarity of his. 
He wouldn't talk to people unless he understood them. At a dinner 
party with a certain set that he knew all well he would lead in the 
conversation but any alien or novel element would seal his tongue. 
This great shyness or reticence sometimes, perhaps, made him 
misunderstood. 

George \V. Childs. 

Colonel A. K. McClure, the distinguished and talented editor of 
the Philadelphia Times, writes as follows, under the heading — 
" Grant and the Electoral Commission." 

" Mr. Childs was probably the most intimate personal friend 
General Grant had during the last ten or fifteen years of his life, 
and it is known that in grave political complications, Mr. Childs 
was often privately and unreservedly consulted by the General. 

"In Mr. Childs' recollections of General Grant, given over his 
own signature, he throws some new light on Grant's view of the 



830 LIFE OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

Presidential contest of 1876. He recites a conversation between 
General Grant and several leading Republicans, who declared that 
Hayes was elected, to which Grant answered — ' Gentlemen, it looks 
to me as if Mr. Tilden was elected.' This was on the * morning of 
the momentous day,' as Mr. Childs states it. To this General 
Grant added — " I would sooner have Tilden than that the Republi- 
cans should have a President who could be stigmatized as a fraud.' 

" Mr. Childs might have given another conversation of General 
Grant's on the subject in corroboration of the view he presents. 
Just before Grant started on his journey around the world, the 
writer hereof heard him discuss the same question in Mr. Childs' 
presence. General Grant reviewed the contest for the creation of 
the Electoral Commission and the contest before and in the Com- 
mission, very fully and with great candor, and the chief significance 
of his view was in the fact, as he stated it, that he expected from 
the beginning until the final judgment, that the Electoral vote of 
Louisiana would be awarded to Tilden. He spoke of South Caro- 
lina and Oregon as justly belonging to Hayes; of Florida as reason- 
ably doubtful, and of Louisiana as for Tilden. 

'* In point of fact, General Grant doubtless influenced Congress 
to create the Electoral Commission, and he did it believing that the 
certificate of election would be given to Tilden. He did not urge 
the Electoral Commission because he desired Tilden's election, but 
because he desired a fair adjudication of the dispute, and he did not 
conceal his conviction that such an adjudication would make Tilden 
President. Being President, however, and sworn to execute the 
laws, had there been revolutionary action to inaugurate Tilden after 
the final judgment of the law by the Electoral Commission, to 
whose arbitrament both sides had appealed, he would have sternly 
suppressed it. He would have maintained the right of Hayes to 
the office with exactly the same earnestness of purpose that he 
would have maintained the right of Tilden to the Presidency, had 
the decision been in his favor.'* 



p 



1 



